THE  LIBRARIES 


FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 


COLONEL  DONOVAN   IN  FIGHTING   TRIM    AFTER  ST.    MIHIEL 


FATHER  DUFFY'S 
STORY 

A  TALE   OF  HUMOR  AND  HEROISM,  OF 

LIFE  AND  DEATPI  WITH  THE  FIGHTING 

SIXTY-NINTH 

BY 
FRANCIS  P.  DUFFY 

CHAPLAIN,  165th  INFANTRY 
WITH   AN  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  BY 

JOYCE  KIL]\IER 


NEW  xBir  WRK 

GEORGE  H.  DORAN  COMPANY 


Copyright,  1919, 
By  George  H.  Doran  Company 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


-ffO  THE  MEMORY  OF  OUR  DEAD 

THIS  BOOK 

IS  REVERENTLY  DEDICATED 


PREFACE 

On  one  occasion,  after  having  had  to  swallow  an  excep- 
tionally large  dose  of  complimentary  eloquence,  I  stated  that 
I  was  going  to  borrow  a  title  for  my  book  from  my  favorite 
philosopher,  Mr.  Dooley,  and  call  it  "Alone  in  Europe."       'I 

The  title  that  has  been  given  it  sounds  almost  as  egoistic 
as  that;  but  there  will  be  found  in  these  pages  other  names 
than  my  own.  Indeed,  objection  may  be  made  from  a  literary 
point  of  view  that  the  book  bristles  with  names.  I  could  not 
write  my  story  otherwise.  I  knew  these  men,  and  what 
they  did,  and  my  only  regret  is  that  I  have  undoubtedly 
overlooked  some,  especially  amongst  replacements,  whose 
names  and  deeds  should  be  mentioned.  Battles  are  not 
fought  by  commanding  officers  alone,  not  even  by  chaplains 
unaided ;  and  the  men  who  do  the  fighting  usually  get  little 
personal  credit  for  their  valor. 

My  chronicle  claims  no  merit  save  that  of  being  true. 
The  only  critics  I  had  in  mind  while  writing  it  were  those 
who  fought  in  France.  If  they  say  that  the  pictures  are 
true,  I  am  content.  The  diary  style  has  been  deliberately 
chosen  because  it  permits  the  introduction  of  incidents,  and 
also  lends  itself  to  the  telling  of  a  plain  unvarnished  tale. 

Every  Regiment  in  a  combat  division  has  a  similar  story, 
if  any  one  of  its  members  has  the  knowledge  and  patience 
to  tell  it.  "The  Irish  69th"  had  naturally  its  own  special 
flavor  of  race  with  the  buoyant  spirits,  the  military  clan, 
and  the  religious  ardor  that  mark  the  race.  No  picture  of 
the  regiment  would  be  complete  that  did  not  give  a  generous 
place  to  this  phase  of  its  life. 

Happily,  the  Irish  spirit  has  always  managed  to  combine 
generous  tolerance  with  its  fervors.  As  a  result,  there  are 
no  more  enthusiastic  adherents  of  the  Irish  69th  than  those 

vii 


•  •• 


vui  PREFACE 

of  its  members  who  did  not  share  in  the  blood  or  the  creed 
of  the  majorit}?-. 

As  for  myself,  I  liked  them  all.    I  am  a  very  Irish,  very 

.^/Catholic,  very  American  person  if  anybody  challenges  my 
convictions.     But  normally,  and  let  alone,  I  am  just  plain 

(^  human.  My  appreciation  of  patriotism,  or  courage,  or  any 
other  attractive  human  trait,  is  not  limited  in  any  degree  by 
racial  or  religious  or  sectional  prejudice.  Tlxat  was  the 
spirit  of  our  Army;  may  it  always  be  the  spirit  of  our  Re- 
public. 

Joyce  Kilmer  was  to  have  written  this  book.  I  took  over 
the  task  after  his  death  in  battle.  The  manuscript  he  left 
had  been  hurriedly  written,  at  intervals  in  a  busy  soldier 
existence,  which  interested  him  far  more  than  literary  work. 
I  have  taken  the  liberty  of  adding  his  work,  incomplete 
though  it  is,  to  my  own;  because  I  feel  that  Kilmer  would 
be  glad  at  having  his  name  associated  with  the  storj"-  of  the 
Regiment  which  had  his  absolute  devotion;  and  because  I 
cannot  resist  the  temptation  of  associating  with  my  own 
the  name  of  one  of  the  noblest  specimens  of  humanity  that 
has  existed  in  our  times. 

I  wish  to  thank  Major  Meaney,  Major  Bootz,  Captain 
Allen,  Lieutenants  Harold  Allen  and  Thomas  C.  P.  Martin, 
Sergeant  Major  O'Connell  and  the  Company  Clerks  for 
data  for  this  book;  Sergeant  William  Halligan,  Privates 
John  F.  McLoughlin  and  Arthur  Shea,  Mr.  Paul  Shea, 
and  Father  John  B.  Kelly  for  assistance  in  preparing  the 
manuscript  for  publication ;  and  Sergeants  T.  C.  Ranscht 
and  R.  L.  Clarke  for  the  maps  that  appear  in  this  volume. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I  Prei  ml\tions  at  Home 13 

II  In  Training  Abroad 36 

III  The  Luneville  Sector 60 

IV  The  Baccarat  Sector 85 

V  The  Champagne  Defensive 119 

VI    The  Battle  of  the  Ourcq 158 

VII     After  the  Battle 207 

\TII    The  St.  Mihiel  Offensive 232 

IX    The  Argonne  Offensive 261 

X    With  the  Army  of  Occupation 306 

Historical  Appendix  by  Joyce  Kilmer       .     .     .331 

Appendices 355 

Regimental  Record 

Decorations,  165th  Infantry 

Officers  Who  Served  in  the  165th  Infantry 

Citations,  165th  Infantry 

Officers   of   New  York   Chapter    "Rainbow" 

Division 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  165th  Infantry 
Woman's  Auxiliary  to  the  165th  Infantry 


u 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Colonel  Donovan  in  Fighting  Trim       .     .     .        Frontispiece 

PAGE 

FrancisP.  Duffy,  Chaplain,  1 65TH  Infantry     ....       22 

General  Lenihan, Lieutenant  Grose,  Colonel  Mitchell, 
Father  Duffy,  Mr.  George  Boothby  of  the  "Y," 
AND  Judge  Egeman  of  the  K.  of  C 142 

Map  of  the  Battlefield  of  the  Ourcq 181 

At  Quentin  Roosevelt's  Grave.    The  Central  Figure 

IS  Colonel  McCoy 238 

Map  of  the  St.  Mehiel  Salient     .  ,  .     ,     ,     ...     .     245 

Map  of  the  Battle  of  the  Argonne 295 

Operations  Map:  165TH  Infantry,  1917-1919     ...     354 


FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 


FATHER   DUFFY'S  STORY 

CHAPTER  I 
PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME 

RECTORY,    CHURCH    OF   OUR    SAVIOUR,    BRONX 

June,  19 1 7 
War  with  Germany  was  declared  on  April  6th,  19 17. 
Immediately  the  National  Guard  Regiments,  knowing  that 
they  would  be  the  first  to  be  called  from  civilian  occupa- 
tions, began  campaigning  for  recruits.  Ours  was  conducted 
with  little  noise  or  speech  making.  An  Irish  Regiment  has 
its  troubles  in  time  of  peace,  but  when  the  call  to  arms 
was  sounding  we  knew  that  if  they  let  us  we  could  easily 
offer  them  an  Irish  Brigade  for  the  service.  We  were  more 
occupied  with  quality  than  with  numbers.  The  one  bit  of 
publicity  we  indulged  in  was  to  send  round  our  machine- 
gun  trucks  through  the  city  streets  with  the  placard,  "Don't 
join  the  69th  unless  you  want  to  be  among  the  first  to  go 
to  France."  That  was  the  only  kind  of  men  we  wanted — 
not  impressionable  youth  who  would  volunteer  under  the 
stimulus  of  a  brass  band  or  a  flood  of  patriotic  oratory. 
The  old-timers  were  told  to  bring  in  friends  who  had  the 
right  stuff  in  them.  The  Catholic  Clergy  were  asked  to 
send  in  good  men  from  the  Parish  athletic  clubs. 

The  response  was  immediate.  Every  night  the  big  re- 
ception rooms  were  packed  with  men  taking  the  physical 
tests.  The  medical  staff  had  to  be  increased  at  once  to  meet 
the  situation  and  officers  and  enlisted  men  were  impressed 

13 


14.  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

into  the  service  for  taking  the  minor  tests.  These  tests 
were  rigid.  Nobody  was  taken  who  fell  below  the  stand- 
ard in  age,  height,  weight,  sight  or  chest  measurement — or 
who  had  liquor  aboard  or  who  had  not  a  clean  skin.  Many 
of  those  who  were  turned  down  for  underweight  or  imper- 
fect feet  were  readily  accepted  in  other  Regiments  which 
had  more  difficulty  in  getting  men.  And  when  we  re- 
ceived contingents  from  those  regiments  later  on  I  often 
had  to  listen  to  the  humorous  reproach,  "^^^ell,  I  got  in  in 
spite  of  the  lot  of  you." 

Amongst  the  sturdiest  and  brightest  of  our  recruits  were 
two  young  men  who  had  recently  been  Jesuit  Novices.  I 
amused  one  Jesuit  friend  and,  I  am  afraid,  shocked  another 
by  saying  that  they  were  exercising  a  traditional  religious 
privilege  of  seeking  a  higher  state  of  perfection  by  quitting 
the  Jesuits  and  joining  the  69th. 

We  came  back  from  Texas  less  than  a  thousand  strong. 
Of  these  we  could  count  on  500  for  a  new  v/ar,  which  left 
us  1,500  to  go  to  meet  the  number  then  fixed  for  an  Infan- 
try Regiment — 2,002.  We  were  not  long  in  reaching  that 
number.  Lieutenant  Colonel  Reed  telegraphed  the  War 
Department  for  permission,  pending  the  proposed  increase 
of  a  Regiment  to  3,600,  to  establish  a  waiting  list,  but  the 
application  was  refused.  In  the  latter  days  we  were  turning 
away  300  a  week,  sending  them  to  other  Regiments. 

Our  2,000  men  were  a  picked  lot.  They  came  mainly 
from  Irish  County  Societies  and  from  Catholic  Athletic 
Clubs.  A  number  of  these  latter  Irish  bore  distinctly  Ger- 
man, French,  Italian  or  Polish  names.  They  were  Irish  by 
adoption,  Irish  by  association  or  Irish  by  conviction.  The 
69th  never  attempted  to  set  up  any  religious  test.  It  was 
an  institution  offered  to  the  Nation  by  a  people  grateful  for 
liberty,  and  it  always  welcomed  and  made  part  of  it  any 
American  citizen  who  desired  to  serve  in  it.  But,  naturally, 
men  of  Irish  birth  or  blood  were  attracted  by  the  traditions 
of  the  69th,  and  many  Catholics  wanted  to  be  with  a  regi- 
ment where  they  could  be  sure  of  being  able  to  attend  to 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  15 

their  religious  duties.     About  5  percent  of  the  2,000  were 
Irish  neither  by  race  nor  racial  creed. 


69TH    REGIMENT   ARMORY 

July  20th,  1917 

Frank  Ward  O'Malley  of  the  New  York  Sun  has  writ- 
ten up  in  his  inimitable  style  a  little  scene  from  life  in  an 
Irish  regiment.  The  newcomers  are  not  yet  accustomed  to 
the  special  church  regulations  relieving  soldiers  of  the  obli- 
gation of  Friday  abstinence.  Last  Friday  the  men  came  back 
from  a  hard  morning's  drill  to  find  on  the  table  a  generous 
meal  of  ham  and  cabbage.  The  old-timers  from  the  Border 
pitched  into  this,  to  the  scandal  of  many  of  the  newer  men 
who  refused  to  eat  it,  thus  leaving  all  the  more  for  the 
graceless  veterans.  After  dinner  a  number  of  them  came  to 
me  to  ask  if  it  were  true  that  it  was  all  right.  I  said  it 
was,  because  there  was  a  dispensation  for  soldiers.  "Dis- 
pensation," said  a  Jewish  boy,  "what  good  is  a  dispensation 
for  Friday  to  me.  I  can't  eat  ham  any  day  of  the  week. 
Say,  Father,  that  waiter  guy,  with  one  turn  of  his  wrist, 
bust  two  religions." 

POLO    GROUNDS 

July  25th,  1917 

A  great  day  for  Ireland.  Everybody  aboard  and  up  the 
river  to  152nd  Street  and  then  to  the  Polo  Grounds.  Base- 
ball Game  as  benefit  for  the  69th,  between  Giants  and  Cin- 
cinnatis,  thanks  to  the  generosity  of  our  good  friends, 
Harry  Hempstead,  John  Whalen,  Herbert  Vreeland,  and 
John  J.  McGraw.  A  fine  game — plenty  of  people,  plenty 
of  fun,  and  best  of  all,  plenty  of  money  for  the  exchequer, 
which,  after  an  ancient  venerable  custom,  is  going  to  have 
an  ecclesiastical  chancellor.  Mr.  Daniel  M.  Brady,  the  God- 
father of  the  regiment,  had  procured  the  signature  of 
President  Wilson  on  a  baseball  which  he  auctioned  off  dur- 
ing the  game.     I  asked  him  if  he  had  arranged  for  a  pur- 


16  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

chaser.  "I  have  selected  one,"  he  said.  "Is  he  aware  that 
he  is  going  to  buy  it?"  I  asked.  "He  will  be  informed  at 
the  proper  time,"  said  Mr.  Brady  with  a  smile.  "How 
much  is  he  going  to  pay  for  it?"  "Well,  I  don't  consider 
$500.00  too  much  to  pay  for  the  privilege."  So  after  a 
certain  number  of  bids,  real  or  fictitious,  the  ball  was 
knocked  down:  at  $500.00  to  Mr.  James  Butler,  who  ac- 
cepted the  verdict  smilingly  and  was  allowed  the  privilege 
of  handing  the  ball  back  to  me.  I  am  to  auction  it  in  Paris 
for  the  French  Orphans'  Fund.  So  Mr.  Brady  says, 
though  I  wish  I  had  his  confidence  that  we  shall  ever  get  to 
Paris. 

ARMORY 

'August  5th,  1917 
Father  John  Kelly  had  me  meet  Joyce  Kilmer  this  eve- 
ning. Nothing  of  the  long-haired  variety  about  him — a. 
sturdy  fellow,  manly,  humorous,  interesting.  He  was  a 
iittle  shame-faced  at  first,  for  he  had  told  Father  Kelly 
that  he  was  going  to  join  up  with  the  69th  and  he  is  now 
in  the  7th.  "I  v^-ent  to  the  Armory  twice,"  he  said,  "but 
failed  to  find  the  recruiting  officer."  I  told  him  that  if  we 
could  not  have  him  in  the  69th  the  next  best  place  was  the 
7th,  but  he  still  wants  to  return  to  his  first  love,  so  I  shall 
be  glad  to  arrange  it.  If  he  left  the  whole  matter  up  to  my 
decision  he  would  stay  home  and  look  after  his  large  family 
and  let  men  with  fewer  responsibilities  undertake  this  task, 
at  least  until  such  time  as  the  country  would  have  need  of 
every  man.  But  he  is  bound  to  do  his  share  and  do  it  at 
once,  so  there  is  no  use  taking  off  the  fine  edge  of  his  en- 
thusiasm. He  is  going  about  this  thing  in  exactly  the  same 
spirit  that  led  him  to  enter  the  Church.  He  sees  what  he 
considers  a  plain  duty,  and  he  is  going  ahead  to  perform 
it,  calm  and  clear  eyed  and  without  the  slightest  regard  to 
what  the  consequences  may  be. 

I  shall  be  glad  to  have  him  with  us  personally  for  the 
pleasure  of  his  companionship,  and  also  for  the  sake  of  the 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME 

regiment  to  have  a  poet  and  historian  who  will  confer  upc 
us  tlie  gift  of  immortality.  I  compared  him  with  the  ol! 
lad  that  one  lot  of  Greeks  sent  to  another  to  stir  them  tl 
victory  by  his  songs;  and  he  wagged  a  pair  of  vigorous 
protesting  legs  at  me  to  show  he  was  no  cripple.  So  I  tried 
him  with  a  quotation  from  a  poet  that  no  poet  could  ever 
resist;  and  with  some  reservations  about  the  words  "Grey 
Bard"  I  managed  to  drive  my  compliment  home: 

For  not  to  have  been  dipt  in  Lethe's  lake 
Could  make  the  son  of  Thetis  not  to  die ; 
But  that  grey  bard  did  him  immortal  make 
With  verses  dipt  in  dews  of  Castaly. 

ARMORY 

August  1 8th,  191 7 
We  are  still  full  of  excitement  at  our  selection  from 
among  the  National  Guard  Regiments  of  New  York  to 
represent  our  State  in  the  selected  42nd  or  Rainbow  Divi- 
sion which  is  to  go  abroad  amongst  the  very  first  for  active 
service.  It  is  an  undeniable  compliment  to  the  condition 
of  the  Regiment  and  we  are  pleased  at  that  as  well  as  at  the 
prospects  of  carrying  our  battle-ringed  standards  to  fly  their 
colors  on  the  fields  of  France.  Our  Regimental  organiza- 
tion has  been  accepted  intact — it  is  no  composite  Regiment 
that  has  been  selected ;  it  is  the  69th  New  York.  Our  ranks 
however  are  to  be  swelled  to  the  new  total  of  3,600  men  by  , 
the  transfer  of  enlisted  men  from  the  five  other  city  Regi-/ 
ments  of  Infantry.  We  would  have  been  glad  to  have  done' 
our  own  recruiting  as  we  could  easily  have  managed;  but 
these  are  the  orders.  We  shall  give  a  royal  Irish  welcome 
to  our  new  companions  in  arms.  They  are  volunteers  like 
ourselves  and  fellow  townsmen,  and  after  a  little  feeling  out 
of  one  another's  qualities  we  shall  be  a  united  Regiment. 
Already  we  have  received  the  contingent  from  our  old 
friends  in  the  7th — handed  over  to  us  with  a  large  gesture 
of  comradeship  which  that  old  Regiment  knows  so  well 
how  to  make.     The  departing  body  of  320  men  were  es- 


18  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

corted  by  the  remaining  officers  and  men,  and  passed 
through  their  guard  of  honor  to  our  Armory  floor.  Our 
2,000  Hned  the  walls  and  many  perched  themselves  on  the 
iron  beams  overhead.  They  cheered  and  cheered  and 
cheered  till  the  blare  of  the  bands  was  unheard  in  the  joy- 
ous din — till  hearts  beat  so  full  and  fast  that  they  seemed 
too  big  for  the  ribs  that  confined  them,  till  tears  of  em.otion 
came,  and  something  mystical  was  bom  in  every  breast — 
the  soul  of  a  Regiment.  Heaven  be  good  to  the  enemy 
when  these  cheering  lads  go  forward  together  into  battle. 

CAMP    MILLS 

September  ist,  1917 

We  are  tenting  tonight  on  the  Hempstead  Plains,  where 
Colonel  Duffy  and  the  Old  69th  encamped  in  1898,  when 
getting  ready  for  service  in  the  Spanish  War.  It  is  a  huge 
regiment  now — bigger,  I  think,  than  the  whole  Irish  Brigade 
€ver  was  in  the  Civil  War. 

We  have  received  our  new  men  transferred  from  the 
1 2th,  14th,  23rd  and  71st  N.  G.  N.  Y.  Our  band  played 
them  into  Camp  with  the  Regimental  Air  of  "Garry  Owen" 
mingled  with  the  good-fellow  strains  of  "Hail!  Hail!  the 
Gang's  All  Here." 

All  in  all,  the  newcomers  are  a  fine  lot.  A  couple  of  our 
sister  organizations  have  flipped  the  cards  from  the  bottom 
of  the  pack  in  some  instances  and  worked  off  on  us  some 
of  their  least  desirables.  On  the  other  hand,  all  the  Regi- 
ments have  made  up  for  that  by  allowing  men  anxious  to 
come  to  us  to  change  places  with  those  who  prefer  to  stick 
where  they  are.  This  gives  us  a  large  number  of  the  men 
we  want — those  that  feel  their  feet  on  their  native  heath  in 
the  69th,  and  those  that  like  its  recruiting  slogan,  "If  you 
don't  want  to  be  amongst  the  first  to  go  to  France,  don't 
join  the  69th."  For  the  rest,  the  Company  Commanders 
and  Surgeons  know  "Thirty-five  distinct  damnations,"  or 
almost  that  many,  by  wdiich  an  undesirable  can  be  returned 


PREPARx\TIONS  AT  HOME  19 

to  civilian  life  to  take  his  chances  in  the  draft.  Our  re- 
cruiting office  has  been  reestablished  at  the  Armory.  We 
can  get  all  the  good  men  we  want. 

As  he  had  put  the  matter  in  my  hands  Kilmer  did  not 
come  over  with  the  men  from  the  7th,  but  I  had  the  matter 
of  his  transfer  arranged  after  a  short  delay. 


CAMP    MILLS 

September  26th,  19 17 
I  do  not  know  whether  to  take  it  as  a  mark  of  general 
interest  in  the  Old  Regiment  or  as  the  result  of  the  spon- 
taneous big-heartedness  of  a  kindly  and  enthusiastic  Irish 
artist — but  John  McCormack  sang  for  us  tonight.  Sang  in 
the  open  air  with  no  stinting  of  voice  or  program.  Our 
lads  could  have  listened  to  him  till  morning;  I  never  saw 
such  an  eager  mob.  They  kept  calling  for  their  favorite 
McCormack  songs  and  he,  like  the  fine  big  Bouchal  that  he 
is,  laughed  at  their  sallies  and  gave  them  their  hearts'  de- 
sire, until  I  closed  the  unique  performance  by  reminding 
them  (and  him)  that  we  had  a  financial  interest  in  his  voice 
because  he  was  to  sing  for  the  benefit  of  our  Trustees  Fund 
at  no  distant  date.  While  I  write,  the  camp  is  buzzing 
around  me  with  talk  of  the  great  tenor.  A  voice  from  the 
darkness  sums  it  up.  "I  always  knew  he  was  a  great 
singer.  We  got  a  lot  of  his  records  at  home.  But  the  rec- 
ords never  learned  me  that  he's  such  a  hell  of  a  fine  fellow." 


CAMP   MILLS 

Sunday 

I  mess  with  the  Headquarters  Company,  and  James  Col- 
lintine,  who  has  the  job  of  looking  after  us,  always  wel- 
comes Sunday  morning  because  it  gives  a  chance  for  a 
friendly  chat  between  the  two  of  us.  James  had  been  a  deep- 
water  sailor  for  a  good  many  years  since  he  first  left  his 


20  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

home  in  the  Old  Country,  but  has  taken  up  with  the  Infan- 
try because  it  gives  more  prospects  for  fighting  service  in 
this  war.  This  morning  he  said,  "Father  Duffy,  did  ye  iver 
hear  of  Father  Hearrn  of  my  parish  in  the  County  Long- 
ford?" "No,  Jim,  I  never  did."  "Well,  he  was  the  grand- 
est man  in  all  Ireland.  There  was  eight  hundhred  min  in 
Maynooth  College  where  they  study  to  be  priests  and  he 
could  lick  ivery  dam  wan  of  thim.  He  was  a  fine  big  man, 
six  foot  two  in  his  stockin'  feet.  He  used  to  come  down 
the  sthreet  with  a  big  stick  in  his  hand,  and  if  anybody 
gave  anny  throuble  he'd  knock  you  down  just  as  cjuick  as 
look  at  you.  The  whole  parish  loved  him.  Wanst  there 
was  a  fight  in  the  village  green  between  the  peelers  and 
the  people,  and  Father  Hearrn  was  sint  for  to  keep  the 
peace  and  he  came  down  the  road  bowling  over  the  peelers 
as  if  they  was  nine  pins.  There  niver  was  a  nicer  man 
within  the  four  seas  of  Ireland." 

A  soldier  of  Company  K  came  to  my  tent  one  afternoon 
last  week  and  stood  at  the  entrance  fumbling  his  hat  in  his 
hand  like  an  Irish  tenant  of  the  old  days  that  had  not  the 
rent  to  pay  the  landlord.  "What's  the  matter,  Tom?"  "I 
took  a  dhrop  too  much,  and  Captain  Hurley  got  very  mad 
about  it  and  brought  me  up  before  Major  Moynahan.  I 
wouldn't  mind  if  they'd  fine  me  and  be  through  with  it,  for 
I  know  I  deserve  it.  But  the  Major  and  the  Captain  say 
that  they're  not  going  to  stand  anything  like  this,  and  that 
they  won't  lave  me  go  to  the  war.  And  sure,  Father  Duffy, 
if  I  couldn't  go  to  the  war  it'd  kill  me."  The  smile  that 
came  to  my  lips  at  this  very  Irish  way  of  putting  it  vs^as 
suppressed  when  I  thought  of  the  number  of  men  born 
in  the  country  who  were  worried  sick  lest  the  Draft  should 
catch  them  and  send  them  to  the  war.  I  assured  Tom  that 
I  would  use  my  powers  of  persuasion  with  the  Captain  and 
the  ]\Iajor  to  give  him  his  heart's  desire,  if  he  would  take 
the  pledge.  But  we  shall  keep  him  worried  by  a  suspended 
sentence  until  we  get  him  safely  away  from  the  temptations 
of  New  York. 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  21 

I  have  found  an  old  friend  in  Camp  in  the  person  of  Mike 
Donaldson  of  Company  I,  Mike  was  an  altar  boy  of  mine 
in  Haverstraw  not  long  after  I  was  ordained.  We  both 
left  there,  I  to  teach  metaphysics  and  Mike  for  a  career  in 
the  prize-ring,  in  which  he  became  much  more  widely  and 
favorably  known  to  his  fellow  citizens  than  I  can  ever  hope 
to  be.  One  of  his  titles  to  fame  is  that  he  was  sparring 
partner  to  Stanley  Ketchell.  He  has  brought  me  a  set  of 
battered  boxing  gloves  which  he  presented  to  me  with  a 
very  moving  speech  as  relics  of  that  departed  hero.  I  do 
not  know  exactly  what  he  expects  me  to  do  with  the  relics 
but  I  rather  feel  after  his  speech  of  presentation  that  it 
would  be  considered  appropriate  if  I  suspend  them  rever- 
ently from  the  rafter  of  my  chapel  like  the  c.v  voto  offerings 
of  ships  that  one  sees  in  seaport  shrines. 

I  have  become  a  marrying  Parson.  Love  and  fighting 
seem  to  go  together — they  are  the  two  staples  of  romance. 
I  have  had  a  large  number  of  marriages  to  perform.  In 
most  cases  the  parties  enter  my  church  tent  from  the  rear 
and  are  quietly  married  before  the  simple  altar.  We  have 
had  a  few  \yeddings  however  on  the  grand  scale.  Michael 
Mulhern  of  the  Band  had  arranged  for  a  ciuiet  wedding  with 
a  very  sweet  little  girl  named  Peggy  O'Brien.  This  after- 
noon at  four  o'clock  when  I  was  ready  to  slip  over  with  the 
young  couple  and  their  witnesses  to  my  canvas  church  I 
saw  the  band  forming.  "What  is  this  formation  for,  Mi- 
chael. You  don't  have  to  be  in  it,  do  you?"  "Ah,  Father," 
said  Michael,  with  a  blush,  "the  boys  heard  somehow  what 
was  going  to  happen  and  they're  going  to  serenade  us." 
We  had  to  parade  over  to  church  behind  the  band  playing 
a  wedding  march,  with  10,000  soldiers  and  visitors  follow- 
ing curiously  in  the  rear.  So  Michael  and  his  bride  were 
united  in  matrimony  before  a  vast  throng  that  cheered 
them,  and  showered  them  Avith  rice  that  soldiers  brought 
over  from  the  kitchens,  many  of  the  lads  battling  with  the 
groom  for  the  privilege  of  kissing  the  bride. 


£2  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

October  15th,   1917 
We  will  soon  be  off  to  the  war  and  I  have  been  looking 
over  the  Regiment,  studying  its  possibilities. 

About  the  enlisted  men  I  have  not  a  single  doubt.  If 
this  collection  of  hand-picked  volunteers  cannot  give  a  good 
account  of  themselves  in  battle,  America  should  keep  out  of 
v^ar.  The  men  will  fight  no  matter  who  leads  them.  But 
fighting  and  winning  are  not  always  the  same  thing,  and 
the  winning  depends  much  on  the  officers — their  military 
knowledge,  ability  as  instructors  and  powers  of  leadership. 
The  Non-coms  are  a  fine  lot.  The  First  Sergeants  as  I  run 
over  the  list  are  a  remarkable  body  of  good  old-time  sol- 
diers. Starting  with  Company  A,  we  have  John  O'Leary, 
John  O'Neill,  William  Hatton,  Tom  Sullivan,  William  Bai- 
ley, Joseph  Blake,  John  Burke,  Jerome  O'Neill,  Patrick 
McMeniman,  Tim  Sullivan,  Eugene  Gannon,  John  Kenny; 
with  Denis  O'Shea,  A.  McBride,  J.  Comiskey,  and  W.  W. 
Lokker,  for  H.  O.  M.  G.  Supply  and  Medical.  All  of  these 
men  have  been  tried  out  in  the  eight  months  of  Border 
service  and  w^e  are  sure  of  them.  Under  Colonel  Haskell 
the  hard  driven  Company  Commanders  had  to  break  their 
Sergeants  in,  or  break  them — life  was  too  strenuous  for  fa- 
voritism. In  fact,  except  for  recruits,  it  is  surprisingly 
Haskell's  regiment  that  is  going  to  the  front;  Haskell's, 
that  is,  with  the  reservation  that  his  work  was  done  on  the 
basis  of  Colonel  Conley's  selection  and  promotion  in  the 
more  difficult  period  of  peace  service.  When  we  were  se- 
lected for  immediate  over-seas  service  the  authorities  were 
free  to  make  what  changes  they  would,  and  they  left  the 
regiment  intact  except  for  the  transfer  of  one  ]\Iajor  and 
one  Captain.  The  M.  G.  Company  was  vacant  by  resig- 
nation. All  other  officers  remained  at  their  posts,  though 
we  have  been  assigned  a  large  number  of  newly  created 
Lieutenants  to  correspond  with  the  new  tables  of  organiza- 
tion for  a  regiment  of  three  thousand  six  hundred. 

We  like  our  new  Colonel,  though  he  was  a  total  stranger 
to  us  before  the  day  he  came  to  comm.and  us.    He  is  a  West 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  23 

Pointer,  and  went  into  railroading  after  some  years  in  the 
army  as  a  Lieutenant;  but  he  has  loyally  reverted  to  the 
army  whenever  there  was  a  real  call  to  arms.  In  1898  if 
I  had  achieved  my  desire  to  go  out  as  Chaplain  of  the  ist 
D.  C  I  would  have  had  him  as  one  of  my  Majors.  He 
came  into  this  conflict  as  organizer  and  commander  of 
trains,  a  work  for  which  his  experience  fitted  him.  He  is 
a  man  of  middle  height  with  a  strong  body  and  an  attrac- 
tive face,  healthily  ruddy,  strongly  featured,  with  a  halo  of 
thick  grey  hair  above.  He  is  a  man  of  ideas,  of  ideas 
formed  by  contact  with  life  and  business.  He  is  a  tireless 
worker,  and  demands  the  same  unflinching  service  from 
every  man  under  him.  He  has  confidence  in  his  men,  espe- 
cially the  tried  soldiers,  and  he  has  a  strong  liking  for  V.e 
Regiment  and  its  traditions.  The  Regiment  will  do  good 
work  under  the  leadership  of  Colonel  Charles  Hine. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Reed  I  like  better  and  better  every 
day  I  am  with  him.  I  did  not  take  to  him  at  first  and  I 
think  he  was  largely  to  blame.  He  kept  himself  too  much 
aloof.  The  fault,  however,  w^as  partly  ours.  He  came  to 
us  at  a  time  when  we  felt  suspicious  that  it  was  the  inten- 
tion to  destroy  our  character  as  an  Irish  organization,  and 
we  owed  too  much  to  the  men  who  had  created  the  Regi- 
ment and  made  its  reputation  with  their  blood  to  submit 
tamely  to  such  a  scheme  as  that.  Colonel  Reed  was  not 
used  to  being  where  he  was  not  wanted,  and  his  attitude 
was  the  result  of  this  decent  feeling.  When  the  task  of 
forming  a  war-strength  regiment  fell  to  him  he  took  hold 
and  worked  with  single-minded  vigor,  and  he  then  found 
that  everybody  was  anxious  to  work  with  him  loyally.  He 
discovered,  what  I  could  have  told  him,  that  one  thing  the 
Sixty-ninth  admires  is  a  good  soldier.  And  Reed  is  a  good 
soldier,  keen,  active,  and  aggressive.  He  learned  at  once 
to  love  the  regiment  and  is  as  enthusiastic  as  myself  in  his 
regard  for  it.  We  spend  a  great  deal  of  our  free  time  to- 
gether, for  we  have  much  in  common. 

The  senior  INIajor,  Timothy  J.  Moynahan,  is  the  ideal  of 


34  FATHER  DUFFY^  STORY 

the  Irish  soldier,  as  he  comes  down  to  us  in  history  and  in 
fiction.  He  inherits  from  Patrick  Sarsfield's  cavahers,  from 
tlie  regiments  of  Dillon  and  Burke  at  Fontenoy,  from  the 
Connaught  Rangers  at  Fuentes  d'Onoro.  A  soldier  born 
■ — trim,  erect,  handsome,  active  in  his  movements,  com- 
manding and  crisp  in  his  orders.  And  a  soldier  bred — he 
lives  for  the  military  game,  devotes  his  life  to  his  work  as 
military  instructor  in  colleges,  and  to  the  old  69th.  He  is 
ready  with  a  toast  or  a  speech  or  a  neatly  phrased  compli- 
ment, and  equally  ready  to  take  up  the  gage  of  battle,  if 
anyone  should  throw  it  down.  A  vivid  interesting  char- 
acter in  our  drab  modern  life.  He  has  one  fault — a  flar- 
ing Irish  temper  when  military  discipline  is  violated  or  high 
ideals  belittled.  A  fault,  yes,  but  I  feel  there  will  be  tense 
moments  of  life  for  anybody  with  Tim  Moynahan  when  the 
time  com.es  for  a  death  grapple  with  the  Germans.  Phil 
Sheridan  would  have  delighted  in  him. 

Major  Stacom  is  my  parishioner  and  I  am  his  recruit. 
He  acquired  his  interest  in  soldiering  as  a  lx)y  at  St.  Fran- 
cis Xavier  College  under  the  stalwart  old  soldier,  after- 
wards the  hero  of  Santiago — Captain  Drum.  He  came 
to  the  Regiment  as  a  boy  out  of  college,  an  enlisted  man, 
and  the  Irish  lads,  after  guying  the  handsome  youngster  in 
his  college  clothes,  learned  to  love  and  admire  him  for  his 
knowledge  and  ability.  When  he  became  Captain  of  Com- 
pany B  he  recruited  it  by  his  personal  efforts,  and  on  the 
Border  he  had  one  of  the  best  companies  in  the  Regiment. 
Colonel  Haskell  picked  him  from  the  Company  Command- 
ers as  the  first  man  to  nominate  for  a  IMajority.  He  rules 
by  reason  and  kindliness,  and  evokes  the  best  co-operation 
of  all  under  him — officers  or  men. 

INIajor  William  J.  Donovan,  who  commands  the  first  Bat- 
talion was  transferred  to  us  from  the  Brigade  Staff,  but 
he  is  no  stranger  to  us.  On  the  Border  when  he  w^as  Cap- 
tain of  Troop  I  of  the  ist  Cavalry  he  was  the  best  known 
man  of  his  rank  in  the  New  York  Division.  It  was  almost 
certain  that  Donovan  would  be  appointed  our  Colonel  after 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  25 

the  efforts  to  get  Colonel  Haskell  had  failed,  as  he  was  our 
next  choice,  and  General  O'Ryan  knew  that  there  were  no 
politics  about  it,  but  a  sincere  desire  to  find  the  best  military 
leader.  General  O'Ryan  esteems  Donovan  as  highly  as  we 
do.  When  we  were  selected  to  put  the  green  in  the  Rain- 
bow all  the  vacancies  were  to  be  filled  by  transfer,  not  by 
promotion.  Donovan  was  a  Major  on  the  Staff  of  our  Bri- 
gade. Everv'body  knew  that  he  could  get  higher  rank  by 
staying  with  the  27th  Division  but  he  preferred  to  join  in 
with  us.  He  would  rather  fight  with  the  69th  than  with  any 
other  Regiment,  especially  now  that  it  is  to  be  the  first  in 
the  fray,  and  he  would  rather  be  Major  than  Colonel,  for 
in  battles  as  now  conducted  it  is  Majors  who  command  in 
the  actual  fighting. 

Donovan  is  a  man  in  the  middle  thirties,  very  attractive 
in  face  and  manner,  an  athlete  who  always  keeps  himself 
in  perfect  condition.  As  a  football  player  at  Niagara  and 
Columbia,  he  gained  the  sobriquet  of  "Wild  Bill."  But 
that  is  tribute  gained  by  his  prowess  rather  than  his  de- 
meanor. He  is  cool,  untiring,  strenuous,  a  man  that  al- 
ways uses  his  head.  He  is  preparing  his  men  for  the  fa- 
tigues of  open  warfare  by  all  kinds  of  wearying  stunts. 
They  too  call  him  "Wild  BiH"wnth  malicious  unction,  after 
he  has  led  them  over  a  cross  country  run  for  four  miles. 
But  they  admire  him  all  the  same,  for  he  is  the  freshest  man 
in  the  crowd  when  the  run  is  over.  He  is  a  lawyer  by  pro- 
fession, and  a  successful  one,  I  am  told.  I  like  him  for  his 
agreeable  disposition,  his  fine  character,  his  alert  and  eager 
intelligence.  But  I  certainly  would  not  want  to  be  in  his 
Battalion. 

Major  George  Lawrence  of  the  Sanitary  Detachment  is 
one  of  the  best  acquisitions  of  our  Border  experience. 
When  Major  ^Maguire  had  to  leave  us,  we  all  reached  out 
for  Lawrence,  who  was  attached  to  the  12th,  but  was  doing 
duty  at  the  hospital  there.  He  is  well  educated,  a  product 
of  St.  Francis  Xavier  and  Pennsylvania,  a  competent  phy- 
sician and  surgeon,  a  famous  athlete  in  football  and  basket- 


26  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ball  in  his  day,  and  an  athlete  still;  and  one  of  the  most 
devoted  and  most  reliable  men  that  God  has  made  for  the 
healing  of  wounds  of  mind  or  body.  When  I  think  of  what 
we  shall  have  to  go  through  it  makes  me  feel  good  to  see 
George  Lawrence  around. 

Captain  Walter  E.  Powers  of  Headquarters  Company  is 
an  old  soldier  though  still  a  young  man.  He  entered  the 
Regular  Army  out  of  high  school,  out  of  short  trousers,  I 
tell  him.  He  was  Regimental  Sergeant  ]\Iajor  of  the  7th 
Cavalry  when  Haskell  w-as  Adjutant  of  that  famous  Regi- 
ment. And  when  Haskell  became  Colonel  he  pulled  Powers 
out  of  the  Pershing  Expedition  and  made  him  Adjutant  of 
the  69th;  and  he  was  the  best  Adjutant  on  the  Border. 
Latterly  he  has  begun  to  pine  for  a  Company  and  Colonel 
Hine  gave  him  the  Headquarters  Company,  the  duties  of 
which  are  so  varied  and  so  new  that  it  will  take  a  soldier- 
lawyer  like  Powers  to  organize  it.  He  has  the  keenest  dry- 
est  humor  of  any  man  I  know.  H  he  had  not  run  away  to 
be  a  soldier  he  w^ould  have  made  a  successful  lawyer  or 
journalist. 

Captain  George  McAdie  of  Company  A  is  a  Scotchman. 
We  tell  him  that  is  the  worst  thing  we  know  about  him, 
which  is  our  way  of  saying  that  we  do  not  know  anything 
bad  about  him.  Personally  I  am  very  fond  of  our  Scot- 
tish cousins,  because  I  have  known  many  real  Scotchmen 
and  not  merely  jokes  about  them.  The  jokes  never  give 
you  a  suspicion  that  Scotland  idolizes  Robert  Burns,  and 
produces  fighting  men  as  fine  as  there  are  in  the  world. 
George  is  my  kind  of  Scot — like  a  volcano,  rugged  to  out- 
ward view,  but  glowing  w'ith  fire  beneath.  A  good  soldier 
and  a  true  friend — you  like  him  when  you  know  him  a 
while,  and  you  find  something  new  to  like  in  him  the  longer 
you  know  him.  H  his  health  be  as  strong  as  his  spirit  he 
will  do  great  things  in  the  69th. 

Captain  Thomas  Reilley  of  Company  B  is  an  imposing 
being.  He  stands  six  feet  three  or  so  and  fills  the  eye  with 
seeing  any  way  you  look  at  him.    He  is  also  a  college  ath- 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  27 

lete,  a  football  player  of  renown,  of  Columbia  and  New 
York  Universities.  A  lawyer  of  real  power  and  ability,  he 
has  not  given  himself  time  yet  to  reach  his  full  stride  in  his 
profession.  Since  his  college  days  he  has  been  too  much  in 
demand  for  other  services  for  which  his  endowments  and 
instincts  fit  him — athlete,  soldier,  with  a  short  course  in 
political  life,  characteristically  as  an  independent.  He 
writes  well  and  talks  well — too  well,  sometimes,  for  the 
Irish  in  him  makes  him  indifferent  to  the  effects  of  what 
he  has  to  say.  It  makes  him  indifferent  to  all  other  sorts  of 
danger  too;  so  with  his  great  physical  and  mental  powers 
and  his  capacity  for  organization  he  will  render  invaluable 
service  to  the  work  of  the  Regiment. 

Captain  William  Kennelly  of  Company  C  is  also  an  ath- 
lete, with  the  build  of  a  runner,  clean-cut,  trim,  alert.  Brisk 
is  the  word  that  describes  him,  for  the  trait  is  mental  as 
well  as  physical.  He  is  a  Company  drill  master  in  the 
best  sense  of  the  word.  I  have  never  seen  anybody  who 
could  get  more  snap  out  of  a  body  of  men  with  less  nag- 
ging, whether  it  was  a  parade  or  a  policing  detail  than  Bill 
Kennelly.  I  expect  to  see  Company  C  the  smartest  Com- 
pany in  the  Regiment. 

Captain  James  A.  McKenna  of  Company  D  is  a  lawyer — 
Harvard  and  Fordham  produced  him.  He  is  a  fellow  of 
great  ability,  ambitious,  energetic  and  enduring.  He  wall 
go  far  in  any  line  he  may  choose,  and  as  a  soldier  he  will 
score  a  high  mark.  He  has  fine  ideals  and  fine  sentiments 
which  he  chooses  to  conceal  under  a  playfully  aggressive  or 
business-like  demeanor.  But  his  enthusiasms,  patriotic, 
religious,  personal,  are  the  true  fundaments  of  him,  and 
everybody  feels  it.  He  lets  himself  out  most  in  his  affection 
for  his  men  who  reciprocate  his  devotion.  Company  D  un- 
der Jim  McKenna  w'ill  play  a  big  part  in  our  annals  of  war. 

Alexander  E.  Anderson  of  Company  E  is  a  69th  man  by 
heredity.  His  uncle,  Colonel  Duffy,  commanded  the  Regi- 
ment in  1898.  His  cousin,  Major  John  Duffy,  was  in  the 
Regiment  when  Anderson  was  old  enough  to  join  it — and 


28  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

r 

he  joined  it  as  a  private  just  as  soon  as  they  would  let 
him.  lie  is  a  soldier  through  and  through.  His  family 
and  his  business  are  near  to  him,  but  the  69th  is  first  in 
his  thoughts.  He  has  gone  through  all  the  stages  from  pri- 
vate to  captain  without  any  family  favoritism  and  today  he 
stands  out  as  the  keenest  Captain  in  the  Regiment.  He 
went  to  an  Officer's  Training  School  two  years  ago  and 
graduated  with  a  hundred  percent.  Sometimes  they  call 
him  the  100  percent  soldier,  a  title  which  grates  on  him 
exceedingly,  for  he  hates  such  labels  of  praise,  whether 
meant  or  not.  Colonel  Hine  has  asked  me  for  the  names 
of  three  Captains  who  might  be  recommended  for  Majors 
in  emergency.  I  told  him  I  would  name  only  one,  and 
after  that  one,  half  a  dozen  or  more.  "Oh,"  he  said,  "you 
mean  Anderson.  That  is  what  the  Battalion  Commanders 
all  say." 

Captain  Michael  Kelly  is  an  old  soldier,  though  not  an  old 
man.  He  can  wear  military  medals  on  dress-suit  occasions 
which  puzzle  even  the  experts.  A  County  Clare  man  by 
birth,  he  was  drawn  by  fighting  instincts  as  a  youth  into 
the  British  Army,  since  there  was  no  Irish  Army  organized, 
and  fought  through  the  Boer  War  and  Burmese  campaigns. 
In  New  York  he  is  second  in  command  of  the  aqueduct  po- 
lice and  a  Captain  of  the  69th,  succeeding  Captain  P.  J. 
Alaguire,  who  gave  up  his  beloved  Company  F  with  satis- 
faction only  because  it  fell  to  his  trusted  Lieutenant.  Cap- 
tain Kelly  is  a  soldier  first,  last  and  all  the  time.  His 
spear  knoweth  no  brother.  He  visits  infractions  of  military 
discipline  with  sternness  and  vigor.  His  Company  stands 
in  awe  of  him,  and  boasts  of  him  to  others.  They  are 
well  looked  after.  If  I  have  anything  to  distribute  I  have 
to  keep  an  eye  on  him  and  Anderson,  the  two  tyrants 
amongst  Company  Commanders.  Give  them  their  way 
and  everything  would  go  to  Companies  E  and  F,  with  a 
humorous  growl  between  the  two  as  to  who  gets  the  most 
of  the  spoils. 

The  Irish- American  A.  C.  gave  us  Captain  James  Archer, 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  29 

as  it  and  kindred  organizations  have  given  us  many  of  our 
best  soldiers.  There  are  few  young  fellows  around  New 
York  who  have  not  heard  of  Jimmy  Archer,  and  many  a  one 
has  watched  with  delight  his  fleet  limbs  carrying  his  grace- 
ful figure  and  shining  head  around  the  track  to  victory.  He 
has  the  cleanness  and  fineness  of  the  amateur  track  athlete — 
very  distinctly  a  man  and  a  gentleman.  He  has  won  his 
way  through  every  step  upward  in  the  Regiment  and  has 
fairly  won  his  race  to  the  Captain's  bars. 

Captain  James  G.  Finn  of  Company  H  is  a  Spanish 
War  veteran,  though  he  looks  so  young  that  he  has  to  carry 
around  his  service  record  and  the  family  Bible  to  prove  it. 
Not  that  anybody  would  call  Jim  a  liar.  Not  after  taking 
one  look  at  him.  He  is  a  broad-shouldered,  big-chested  fel- 
low, one  that  the  eye  will  pick  out  of  a  crowd,  even  in  a 
congested  crowd,  for  he  stands  above  the  heads  of  ordinary 
mortals.  A  football  player,  of  course — Dartmouth  College. 
A  big  honest  manly  man  and  a  devoted  soldier.  Jim  Finn 
thinks  that  Company  H  is  the  best  bunch  of  fighting  men 
that  ever  shouldered  a  rifle,  and  Company  H  knows  that 
their  big  Captain  is  the  finest  man  in  the  American  Army. 
There  are  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  them,  and  the  Captain 
has  thews  like  the  son  of  Anak,  so  I  don't  intend  to  start 
anything  by  contradicting  either  of  them.  Anyway,  I  more 
than  half  agree  with  them. 

Captain  Richard  J.  Ryan  of  Company  I  is  a  new  comer 
and,  like  a  boy  in  a  new  town,  he  has  his  way  to  make. 
H  I  be  not  "mistook  in  my  jedgments"  he  will  make  it. 
FTe  hails  from  Watertown,  New  York,  and  from  the  ist 
New  York  Infantry,  but  that  does  not  complete  his  military 
history.  He  fought  in  the  Boer  War,  I  suspect  from 
the  same  reason  that  prompted  Kelly — because  that  was  the 
only  war  there  v/as,  and  a  man  must  do  the  best  with  the 
opportunities  he  has.  He  is  all  wrapped  up  in  his  Com- 
pany. He  does  not  seem  to  care  a  hang  what  anybody 
higher  up  is  thinking  about  him.  He  has  his  job.  and  he 
wants  to  see  it  done  right.    That  is  a  good  sign.     A  soldier 


30  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

by  natural  instinct  and  preference,  a  Captain  devoted  to 
his  men — that  goes  with  the  69th.    I  am  for  him. 

Captain  John  Patrick  Hurley  of  Company  K,  is  an  argu- 
ment for  the  continued  existence  of  the  Irish  as  a  people. 
He  has  everything  that  everybody  loves  in  the  Irish,  as 
found  even  the  reluctant  tributes  of  their  hereditary  foes. 
He  has  a  lean,  clean  handsome  face  and  figure,  and  a 
spirit  that  responds  to  ideals  patriotic,  religious,  racial, 
human,  as  eagerly  and  naturally  as  a  bird  soaring  into  its 
native  air.  He  is  perfectly  willing  to  die  for  what  he  be- 
lieves in.  He  would  find  that  much  easier  than  to  live  in  a 
world  of  the  cheap  and  commonplace.  He  always  reminds 
me  of  the  Easter-week  patriots  of  Dublin,  Patrick  Pearse 
and  Plunkett  and  MacDonagh.  Like  myself,  and  I  may 
say  all  of  us,  he  is  in  this  war  as  a  volunteer  because  he 
feels  that  it  is  a  war  against  the  tyranny  of  the  strong, 
and  a  fight  for  the  oppressed  peoples  of  the  earth.  He  is 
an  able,  practical  man  withal;  an  engineer,  graduate  of  Cor- 
nell. He  rules  his  company  as  their  military  commander, 
and  the  tribute  of  affection  and  loyalty  they  pay  him  is  not 
lessened  by  the  knowledge  they  have  that  breaches  of  dis- 
cipline will  meet  with  no  mercy. 

Captain  ]\Ierle-Smith  of  Company  L  came  to  us  on  the 
Border  from.  Squadron  A,  and  the  intervening  year  of  in- 
timacy has  not  changed  the  judgment  I  uttered  the  first 
time  I  saw  him :  "If  I  had  to  pick  out  one  man  to  spend  a 
year  with  me  on  a  voyage  to  Central  Africa,  there  is  the 
man  I  would  select."  A  big  fellow — he  and  Reilly  and  Finn 
are  our  prize  specimens — and  big,  like  them,  all  the  way 
through;  and  with  the  astonishing  simplicity — in  the  old 
theological  sense  of  the  word  as  contrasted  with  duplicity — 
that  one  so  often  finds  in  big  men.  A  college  athlete 
(Princeton)  and  a  lawyer,  the  contests  of  the  campus  and 
the  bar  have  only  whetted  his  appetite  for  more  intense 
battles.  From  the  time  he  joined  us  he  has  felt  that  the 
best  opening  for  real  soldier  work  is  in  this  regiment.  He 
is  a  69th  man  by  conviction,  and  he  is  as  fond  of  his  valiant 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  31 

Kerrymen  in  Company  L  as  they  are  of  him.  I  found  no 
one  in  the  recruiting  period  more  zealous  in  increasing  the 
numbers  of  the  regiment  and  maintaining  at  the  same  time 
its  characteristic  flavor  than  Captain  Van  Santvoordt  Merle- 
Smith. 

Captain  William  Doyle  commanded  Company  M  when 
we  were  called  out,  but  since  Captain  Powers  took  the 
Pleadquarters  Company  he  has  been  made  Adjutant.  It  was 
a  good  choice.  Captain  Doyle  is  a  college  man  (St.  Fran- 
cis Xavier)  and  an  engineer  by  profession,  and  has  been  a 
National  Guardsman  for  more  years  than  one  would  guess. 
His  training  fits  him  for  his  new  job.  His  mind  is  quick 
on  the  trigger,  though  the  speed  and  accuracy  with  which 
it  shoots  a  retort  is  rendered  deceptive  by  his  slightly 
humorous  drawl  in  delivery.  He  is  not  one  of  the  big  fel- 
lows, but  the  big  fellows  think  twice  before  taking  him  on. 

Martin  Meaney,  Captain  of  Company  M,  was  a  Sergeant 
of  Company  G  when  we  were  in  Texas.  I  wanted  Colonel 
Haskell  to  make  him  a  Second  Lieutenant,  but  Martin 
hadn't  left  the  County  Clare  soon  enough  to  satisfy  the  tech- 
nicality of  having  his  final  citizen  papers.  He  could  fight 
for  the  United  States,  but  he  could  not  be  an  officer.  He 
came  of  age  as  a  citizen  during  the  summer  and  went  to 
Plattsburg,  and  the  people  in  charge  there  made  him  not  a 
Second  Lieutenant  but  a  Captain.  Colonel  Haskell,  who  is 
Adjutant  at  Camp  Upton,  found  the  chance  to  send  hinj 
back  to  us  as  a  Captain,  and  we  were  very  glad  to  get  him. 
For  we  know  Martin  Meaney;  and  everyone  who  knows 
Martin  Meaney  likes  him  and  trusts  him.  He  is  a  fine, 
manly  upstanding  young  Irishman  devoted  to  high  ideals, 
practical  and  efficient  withal.  Granted  the  justice  of  my 
cause  there  is  no  man  in  the  world  I  would  so  much  rely  on 
to  stick  to  me  to  the  end  as  Martin  Meaney.  It  makes  us 
all  feel  better  to  have  him  along  with  us  in  our  adventure 
of  war. 

The  vacancy  in  the  IMachine  Gun  Company  was  filled  by 
the  appointment  of  Captain  Kenneth  Seibert,  an  old  guards- 


32  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

man  of  the  Iowa  National  Guard.  He  has  the  position  of 
Johnny-come-lately  with  us  yet,  but  he  knows  the  game 
and  he  will  be  a  veteran  of  ours  by  the  time  we  get  to  our 
first  battle.  His  whole  organization  is  practically  new,  but 
he  is  very  keen  about  it,  and  is  an  excellent  manager,  so 
we  feel  that  he  will  soon  have  it  in  shape. 

Captain  John  Mangan  of  the  Supply  Company  is  the  salt 
of  the  earth.  I  like  Jack  Mangan  so  much  that  I  always 
talk  that  way  about  him,  and  incidentally  I  waste  his  time 
and  mine  by  holding  him  for  a  chat  whenever  we  meet.  He 
came  to  us  before  we  went  to  the  Border.  His  friends 
were  in  another  regiment,  but  all  that  was  nice  and  Irish 
about  him  made  him  want  to  l>e  with  the  69th.  He  is  a 
Columbia  man  and  a  contractor.  Colonel  Haskell  got 
his  eye  on  him,  when,  as  a  Second  Lieutenant,  he  was  put 
in  charge  of  a  detail  of  offenders  who  had  to  do  some 
special  work.  Under  Mangan  their  work  was  not  mere  pot- 
tering around.  They  did  things.  While  we  were  on  the 
big  hike  Mangan  was  left  behind  with  a  detail  of  cripples 
to  build  mess  shacks.  They  were  built,  created  is  a  better 
word,  but  we  were  doomed  never  to  use  them,  as  we  got 
orders  during  the  hike  to  proceed  to  another  station.  I  said 
to  Haskell :  "Don't  forget  to  compliment  Lieutenant  Man- 
gan on  his  work,  for  he  has  done  wonders,  and  it  looks  now 
to  have  been  all  in  vain."  Haskell  answered  with  assumed 
grimness:  "Lieutenant  Mangan  will  not  be  Lieutenant 
Mangan  long."  He  was  Captain  Mangan,  R.  S.  O.  (Regi- 
mental Supply  Officer)  as  soon  as  the  formalities  could  be 
arranged ;  and  in  a  short  time  he  was  the  best  supply  officer 
on  the  Border,  as  his  training  as  a  contractor  gave  him  ex- 
perience in  handling  men  and  materials. 

Everybody  likes  Mangan — half -rebellious  prisoners  and 
sodjering  details  and  grasping  civilians  and  grouchy  divi- 
sion quartermasters.  For  "he  has  a  way  wnd  him."  At 
bottom  it  is  humor  and  justness,  with  appreciation  of  the 
other  fellow's  difficulties  and  states  of  mind.  With  his 
fairness  and  balance,   he  carries  such  an  atmosphere  oii 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  33 

geniality  and  joy  of  life  that  everybody  begins  to  feel  a  new 
interest  in  the  game  and  a  new  willingness  to  play  a  decent 
part  in  it. 

So  far  as  I  can  see  it  now,  our  Captains  average  higher 
than  our  Lieutenants,  though  time  will  have  to  show  if  I  am 
right.  But  at  present  I  can  point  my  finger  to  half  a  dozen 
Captains  at  least  who  could  easily  fill  the  job  of  Major, 
without  being  so  certain  of  finding  an  equal  number  of 
Lieutenants  who  could  make  as  good  Captains  as  the  men 
they  replace.  Probably  all  that  this  proves  is  that  the  Cap- 
tains have  the  advantage  of  experience  in  their  positions, 
and  that  their  juniors,  when  equal  opportunity  is  given 
them,  will  develop  to  be  just  as  good.  Amongst  the  Lieu- 
tenants the  first  to  my  mind  is  John  Prout,  a  fine  young 
Tipperary  man  of  the  stamp  of  Hurley  and  Meaney.  Oth- 
ers in  line  are  Samuel  A.  Smith,  John  Poore  and  William 
McKenna,  the  four  Burns  brothers  (all  good,  but  Jim  in  my 
judgment  the  best),  also  William  Burns,  Richard  Allen, 
Clifi^ord,  Kelley,  Kinney,  Joseph  MacNamara,  Crimmins, 
Carroll,  Andrew  Lawrence,  John  Green,  Thomas  C.  Mar- 
tin, with  Rowley,  Grose,  Baker,  Joseph  O'Donohue,  James 
Mangan,  O'Brien,  Philbin,  Cavanaugh,  Reune  Martin,  who 
came  to  us  while  in  the  Armory.  Of  the  newcomers  sent 
to  us  here  at  Camp  Mills  four  of  the  old  regular  army  men 
stand  out :  Lieutenants  Michael  J.  Walsh,  Henry  A.  Bootz, 
Patrick  Dowling  and  Francis  McNamara.  Our  Medical 
Department  consists  of  Major  Lawrence  with  Doctors 
Houghton,  Lyttle,  Martin,  Kilcourse,  Levine,  Patton,  Bam- 
ford,  Austin  Lawrence  and  Landrigan. 

October  25th,   1917 

We  are  the  best  cared  for  Regiment  that  ever  went  to 
war.  Mr.  Daniel  M,  Brady,  who  was  chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee for  employment,  appointed  by  Justice  Victor  J.  Dow> 
ling  of  the  Friendly  Sons  of  St.  Patrick,  when  we  came 
back  from  the  Border,  has  reorganized  and  increased  that 
body  and  our  Board  of  Trustees  now  consists  of  Morgan 


34  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

J.  O'Brien,  chairman,  Daniel  M.  Brady,  John  J.  Whalen, 
Joseph  P.  Grace,  Victor  J.  DowHng,  John  D.  Ryan,  George 
McDonald,  Nicholas  F.  Brady,  John  E.  O'Keefe,  Louis  D. 
Conley,  and  Bryan  Kennelly.  They  have  raised  ample 
funds  from  private  subscriptions  and  from  the  generous 
benefits  offered  through  the  kindly  generosity  of  the  New 
York  Baseball  Club  and  of  Mr.  John  McCormack.  They 
have  given  $10,000.00  in  cash  to  the  Company  and  Regi- 
mental Funds,  and  $1,600  for  the  Chaplain's  Fund  "for 
religion  and  divilment."  All  sorts  of  sporting  goods,  in- 
cluding two  complete  sets  of  uniforms  of  Giants  and  Cubs, 
equip  us  fully  for  the  sort  of  strenuous  life  which  we  most 
enjoy. 

The  Women's  Auxiliary  is  also  formed,  Mrs.  Hennings 
being  the  President,  for  looking  after  the  families  of  sol- 
diers while  they  are  away,  and  sending  gifts  abroad. 

Some  of  our  wealthy  friends  in  the  Board  of  Trustees 
have  also  held  dinners  to  which  have  been  invited  the  prin- 
cipal officers  of  Regiment,  Brigade,  and  Division.  It  hay 
helped  us  to  get  acquainted  with  our  chief  superiors.  I 
was  particularly  glad  to  have  the  opportunity  of  getting  a 
more  intimate  knowledge  of  General  Mann  and  his  Chief  of 
Staff,  Colonel  Douglas  Mc Arthur — a  brilliant  youthful- 
looking  soldier  for  whom  I  had  already  formed  a  high 
esteem  and  admiration  from  casual  meeting.  He  has  been 
very  helpful  in  furthering  my  plans  to  have  a  large  body  of 
priests  from  Brooklyn  and  New  York  give  the  men  of 
the  whole  Division  an  opportunity  of  receiving  the  sacra- 
ments before  going  abroad. 


MONTREAL 

October  28th,   1917 

Orders  at  last.  They  came  in  for  the  ist  Battalion  Octo- 
ber 25th.  They  slipped  out  quietly  by  night.  I  went  with 
them  to  Montreal,  travelling  with  Companies  B  and  D. 
The  men  were  in  gleeful  spirits,  glad  to  have  the  wait  over 


PREPARATIONS  AT  HOME  35 

and  to  be  off  on  the  Long  Trail.  Edward  Connelly  and  I 
sat  up  chatting  most  of  the  night.  One  remark  of  his 
struck  me.  His  father  was  Captain  of  Company  B  in  the 
69th  during  the  Civil  War.  "Some  people  say  to  me,  'With 
your  two  boys  I  don't  see  how  you  can  afford  to  go  to 
war.'  With  my  two  boys  I  can't  see  how  I  can  afford  not 
to  go  to  war." 

The  two  soldiers  who  appealed  to  me  most  aboard  the; 
train  were  Supply  Sergeant  Billy  McLaughlin  and  Lieuten- 
ant Bootz.  They  stayed  up  all  night  to  look  after  our  needs, 
and  they  showed  a  combination  of  efficiency  and  cheerful- 
ness— a  very  model  of  soldierly  spirit. 

I  saw  them  all  onto  the  Tunisia  on  their  way  to  Liver- 
pool.   God  speed  them. 


CHAPTER  II 
IN  TRAINING  ABROAD 

BREST 

November  13th,  1917 
We  moved  out  of  Camp  Mills  on  the  night  of  October 
29th  and  took  trains  at  the  nearby  station — off  at  last  for 
foreign  service.  Parts  of  Companies  L  and  M  were  left 
to  guard  the  camp.  We  found  at  Hoboken  that  we  were 
to  sail  on  a  fine  ship — the  converted  German  liner  Anierika 
which  had  been  re-christened  with  the  change  of  the  penul- 
timate letter.  Our  trip  was  uneventful.  The  seas  were 
calm,  and  sailing  on  the  America  was  like  taking  a  trip 
on  the  end  of  a  dock — you  had  to  look  over  the  side  to 
realize  that  she  was  in  motion.  No  submarines,  though  we 
were  on  constant  watch  for  them.  "What  are  you  doing 
here?"  asked  one  of  the  ship's  officers  of  big  Jim  Hillery, 
who  stood  watch.  "Looking  for  something  Oi  don't  want 
to  foind,"  answered  Jim  with  a  grin. 

We  did  not  know  where  our  journey  was  to  end  but 
finally  on  November  12th  we  made  port  in  the  beautiful 
harbor  of  Brest,  where  we  have  been  idling  all  week  be- 
cause we  have  been  the  first  convoy  to  put  in  here,  and 
no  preparations  have  been  made  to  land  us  and  our  equip- 
ment, and  afford  transportation  to  our  destination. 

November  15th,  1917 

This  morning  I  told  Colonel  Hine  that  I  wanted  a  day 

in  town  to  get  some  necessaries  for  my  church  work,  and 

permission  was  readily  granted.     I  inquired  the  way  to 

the  nearest  church,  timing  my  visit  to  get  in  aroimd  the 

36 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  37 

dinner  hour,  so  as  to  get  an  invitation  for  a  meal.  As  I 
rang  the  bell  of  the  rectory,  the  door  opened  and  a  poor 
woman  with  two  children  came  out  carrying  a  basket  into 
which  the  housekeeper  had  put  food.  I  said  to  myself: 
Where  charity  exists,  hospitality  ought  to  flourish.  I  waited 
in  the  customary  bare  ecclesiastical  parlor  for  the  Cure, 
and  at  last  he  came,  a  stout  middle-aged  man,  walking  with 
a  limp.  I  presented  myself,  very  tall  and  quite  imposing 
in  my  long  army  overcoat,  and  told  him  I  came  in  search 
of  altar  breads.  He  immediately  proposed  to  take  me  to  a 
convent  some  distance  away  where  my  wishes  might  be  sat- 
isfied. As  I  followed  him  along  the  cobbled  streets  I  said 
to  myself,  "I  had  thought  these  Bretons  were  a  kind  of 
Irish,  but  they  lack  the  noblest  of  the  traditions  of  the  Celtic 
race,  or  this  old  gentleman  would  have  asked  me  to  din- 
ner." It  was  only  later  that  I  found  that  my  tremendous 
presence  had  embarrassed  him  and  he  had  therefore  decided 
to  bring  me  to  somebody  whom  nothing  would  embarrass. 
One  need  not  say  that  this  was  a  woman — the  Mother 
Superior  of  an  institution  which  was  school,  orphanage  and 
pension  in  one. 

She  was  of  a  type  not  unusual  in  heads  of  religious  com- 
munities— cultivated,  balanced,  perfectly  serene.  After  sup- 
plying my  needs  she  asked  gently,  "Monsieur  has  dined?" 
"No,  ]\Ionsieur  has  not  dined."  "Perhaps  Monsieur  would 
accept  the  humble  hospitality  of  the  convent. '  "IMonsieur 
is  a  soldier,  and  soldiers  have  but  one  obligation — never  to 
refuse  a  meal  when  they  can  get  it."  She  smiled  and 
brought  me  to  the  dining  room,  where  I  met  the  old  chap- 
lain and  two  equally  elderly  professors  from  some  col- 
lege, who  pumped  me  about  America  and  myself  and  Wil- 
son and  myself  and  Roosevelt  and  myself  until  the  meal 
was  over.  Then  I  sallied  forth  with  my  stout  Cure  who 
evidently  had  absorbed,  as  he  sat  silent  through  the  meal, 
all  the  information  I  had  been  giving  out,  particularly  about 
myself.  For  he  brought  me  into  forty  stores  and  stopped 
on  the  street  at  least  a  hundred  people  (and  he  knew  every- 


38  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

body  in  town)  to  introduce  proudly  his  prize  specimen 
of  an  American  priest  in  uniform.  The  introduction  in- 
variably took  this  form : 

"Monsieur  is  an  American."  "He  is  an  officer."  "Mon- 
sieur, though  one  would  not  know  it,  is  a  priest.  He  has  a 
large  parish  in  the  City  of  New  York.  He  has  been  a  Pro- 
fessor in  the  Seminary — of  Philosophy,  mind  you.  Monsieur 
has  a  parish  with  three  vicaires.  He  receives  from  the  noble 
government  of  the  United  States  a  stipend  of  ten  thousand 
francs  a  year.  That  is  what  this  great  country  gives  their 
Chaplains.  He  is  a  Chaplain.  He  has  crosses  on  his  collar. 
Also  on  his  shoulders.  HI  were  taller  I  could  see  them.  I 
saw  them  when  he  was  sitting  down." 

And  at  the  end,  and  always  with  a  little  break  in  his  voice 
as  he  fumbled  with  the  button  of  my  tunic,  "M.  L'Aumonier 
wears  the  tricolor  of  our  country  with  the  badge  of  the 
Sacred  Heart,  which  was  pinned  there  by  the  great  Car- 
dinal of  New  York."  And  this  was  the  man  that  I  thought 
at  first  to  be  cold  and  unfriendly. 

I  had  to  break  away  finally  to  get  back  to  my  ship  as 
evening  was  beginning  to  gather.  I  started  for  the  dock, 
interested  all  the  way  to  observe  the  Celtic  types  of  the 
passersby  and  giving  them  names  drawn  from  my  Irish 
acquaintance,  as  Tim  Murphy  or  Mrs.  O'Shaughnessy. 
Feeling  that  I  was  not  making  for  the  dock  from  which  I 
left,  I  turned  to  a  knot  of  boys,  introducing  myself  as  a 
priest  and  telling  them  that  I  wanted  to  get  back  to  the 
American  transports.  They  jumped  to  help  me  as  eagerly 
as  my  own  altar  boys  at  home  would  do.  One  alert  black- 
eyed  lad  of  fourteen  took  command  of  the  party,  the  rest 
of  them  trailing  along  and  endeavoring  to  give  advice  and 
support.  But  from  the  beginning  this  one  youngster  was 
in  undoubted  command  of  the  situation.  I  tried  once  or 
twice  to  ask  where  he  was  bringing  me,  but  received  only  a 
brief  "Suivez-moi,  Monsieur."  Our  journey  ended  in  an 
alley  where  the  calls  of  my  guide  brought  out  two  fishermen 
who  needed  only  red  night-caps  and  knives  in  their  teeth 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  39 

to  bring  up  associations  of  Stevenson's  pirate-mutineers. 
But  they  were  ready  to  ferry  me  over  to  my  ship  for  a 
compensation,  a  compensation  which  became  quite  moderate 
when  my  Mentor  explained  their  obHgation  as  CathoHcs 
and  as  Frenchmen  to  a  priest  and  an  ally. 

I  was  about  to  embark  in  their  fishing  smack  when  a 
French  marine  came  along  the  dock  and  said  that  under  no 
circumstances  could  a  boat  cross  the  harbor  after  sunset. 
My  fishermen  argued ;  I  argued ;  even  my  irresistible  young 
guide  stated  the  case;  but  to  no  avail.  Finally  I  said  to 
the  youngster,  "Why  waste  my  time  with  this  creature  of  a 
marine.  Lead  me  to  the  person  the  most  important  in 
Brest,  the  Mayor,  the  Governor,  the  Master  of  the  Port,  the 
Commander  of  the  Fleet.  From  such  a  one  I  shall  receive 
permission."  The  youth  gave  me  a  quick  look  and  I  think 
he  would  have  winked  if  my  face  were  not  so  sternly  set 
with  the  importance  I  had  assumed.  He  led  me  off  to 
the  office  of  the  Harbormaster.  It  was  closed.  I  could 
find  no  person  except  the  janitor  who  was  sweeping  the 
front  steps.  I  was  so  put  out  at  the  prospect  of  not  getting 
back  from  my  leave  on  time  that  I  had  to  talk  to  some 
person,  so  I  told  the  janitor  my  worries.  He  insinuated 
that  something  might  be  arranged.  I  had  traveled  in 
Europe  before  and  had  learned  how  things  get  themselves 
arranged.  So  I  produced  from  my  pocket  a  nice  shiny 
two-franc  piece ;  and  in  a  moment  I  discovered  that  I  had 
purchased  for  thirty-five  cents  in  real  money  the  freedom 
of  the  Port  of  Brest.  My  janitor  descended  upon  the 
faithful  marine  with  brandished  broom  and  bellowed  objur- 
gati6ns  that  such  a  creature  should  block  the  way  of  this 
eminent  American  Officer  who  wished  to  return  to  his  ship, 

I  stood  in  the  prow  of  the  smack  as  we  made  our  way 
across  the  dark  and  rainy  harbor  and  I  felt  for  the  first 
time  the  touch  of  romance  as  one  gets  it  in  books.  I 
thought  back  over  the  day,  and  I  had  the  feeling  that  my 
adventures  had  begun,  and  had  begun  with  a  blessing. 


40  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

NAIVES  EN  BLOIS 

Nov.  27th,  1917 

Naives  in  Blooey  we  call  it,  with  a  strong  hoot  on  the 
last  word.  If  Thomas  Cook  and  Son  ever  managed  a  per- 
sonally conducted  party  as  we  have  been  handled  and  then 
landed  it  in  a  place  like  this,  that  long  established  firm 
would  have  to  close  up  business  forthwith.  Guy  Empey 
and  all  the  rest  of  them  had  prepared  us  for  the  "Hommes 
40;  Chevaux  8"  box-cars,  but  description  never  made  any- 
body realize  discomforts.  Anyway,  we  went  through  it  and 
we  would  have  been  rather  disappointed  if  they  had  brought 
us  on  our  three-day  trip  across  France  in  American  plush- 
seat  coaches  (by  the  way  we  growled  about  them  when  we 
went  to  the  Border).  A  year  from  now  if  we  are  alive  wq 
shall  be  listening  with  an  unconcealed  grin  of  superiority 
to  some  poor  fish  of  a  recruit  who  gabbles  over  the  hard- 
ships he  has  undergone  in  the  side-door  Pullmans. 

We  are  forgetting  our  recent  experiences  already  in  the 
meanness  of  these  God-forsaken  villages.  We  are  in  six 
of  them — each  the  worst  in  the  opinion  of  the  Companies 
there.  Naives  will  do  for  a  description  of  Vacon,  Brous- 
sey,  Villeroi,  Bovee  or  Sauvoy.  A  group  of  40  houses  along 
the  slopes  of  a  crinkled  plain.  The  farmers  all  live  to- 
gether in  villages,  as  is  the  custom  in  France.  And  many 
features  of  the  custom  are  excellent.  They  have  a  church, 
school,  community  wash  houses  with  water  supply,  good 
roads  with  a  common  radiating  point  and  the  pleasures 
of  society,  such  as  it  is. 

The  main  drawback  is  that  the  house  on  the  village 
street  is  still  a  farm  house.  The  dung  heap  occupies  a  place 
of  pride  outside  the  front  door;  and  the  loftier  it  stands  and 
the  louder  it  raises  its  penetrating  voice,  the  more  it  pro- 
claims the  worth  and  greatness  of  its  possessor.  The  house 
is  half  residence  and  half  stable  with  a  big  farm  loft  over- 
topping both.  The  soldiers  occupy  the  loft.  I  censored  a 
letter  yesterday  in  which  one  of  our  lads  said :    "There  are 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  41 

three  classes  of  inhabitants  in  tlie  houses — first,  residents; 
second,  cattle;  third,  soldiers."  Over  my  head  are  some 
boys  from  Company  B  who  got  in  ahead  of  ns  with  the 
First  Battalion,  coming  by  way  of  England  and  then  via 
Havre,  after  a  long  and  tedious  trip.  They  are  Arthur 
Viens,  Tom  Blackburn  and  Jim  Lannon  of  my  own  parish 
with  Gilbert,  Gilgar,  Weick,  and  Healey.  Their  life  is 
typical  of  the  rest.  Up  in  the  morning  early  and  over  to 
Sergeant  Gilhooley's  wayside  inn  for  breakfast.  Then  cut 
green  wood  for  fire,  or  drill  along  the  muddy  roads  or  dig 
in  the  muddier  hillsides  for  a  target  range — this  all  day 
with  a  halt  for  noon  meal.  Supper  at  4  :oo  o'clock ;  and 
already  the  sun  has  dropped  out  of  the  gloomy  heavens,  if 
indeed  it  has  ever  shown  itself  at  all.  Then — then  noth- 
ing. They  cannot  light  lanterns — we  have  landed  right 
bang  up  behind  the  front  lines  the  first  jump ;  we  can  hear 
the  heavy  guns  booming  north  along  the  St.  Mihiel  lines; 
and  the  aeroplanes  might  take  a  notion  to  bomb  the  town 
some  night  if  lights  stood  out.  No  fire — dangerous  to  light 
even  a  cigarette  in  a  hay  loft.  There  are  a  couple  of  wine 
shops  in  town  but  they  are  too  small  to  accommodate  the 
men.  If  they  had  a  large  lighted  place  where  they  could 
have  the  good  cheer  of  wine  and  chat  evenings  it  would  be 
a  blessing.  They  are  not  fond  enough  of  "Pinard"  to  dq 
themselves  harm  with  it  and  I  think  the  pious  inn  keepers 
see  that  it  is  well  baptized  before  selling  it.  Good  old 
Senator  Parker  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  has  been  right  on  the 
job  with  tents  for  the  men — of  course  without  any  curse 
of  "rum"  in  them — but  the  cold  w^eather  makes  it  dif- 
ficult to  render  them  habitable. 

So  most  of  the  men  spread  their  blankets  in  the  straw 
and  go  to  bed  at  six  o'clock — a  good  habit  in  the  minds  of 
old-fashioned  folks.  The  squad  overhead  have  another 
good  old-fashioned  habit.  From  the  stable  below  I  can  hear 
them  say  their  beads  in  common  before  settling  down  to 
sleep.  "Father"  Pat  Heaney  of  Company  D  got  them  into 
the  way  of  it  on  the  boat.    Good  lads ! 


42  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

In  comparison  with  them  my  fittings  are  palatial.  I 
have  a  large  square  low-ceilinged  room  with  stone  floor, 
and  French  windows  with  big  wooden  shutters  to  enclose 
the  light.  The  walls  are  concealed  by  the  big  presses  or 
Arnwircs  so  dear  to  the  housewives  of  Lorraine.  The  one 
old  lady  who  occupies  this  house  has  lived  here  for  all  of  her 
70  years  (a  German  officer  occupied  the  high  canopied  bed 
in  1870)  and  she  has  never  let  any  single  possession  she 
ever  had  get  away  from  her.  They  are  all  in  the  Armoircs, 
old  hats,  bits  of  silk,  newspapers — everything.  She  is  very 
pious  and  very  pleased  to  have  M.  I'Aumonier,  but  she 
wouldn't  give  me  a  bit  of  shelf  room  or  a  quarter  inch  of 
candle  or  a  handful  of  petit  hois  to  start  a  fire  in  the 
wretched  fireplace,  without  cash  down. 

"Monsieur  is  a  Cure" 
"Yes,  Madame." 

My  landlady  has  been  quizzing  me  about  the  Regiment, 
my  parish  and  myself.  She  doesn't  understand  this  volun- 
teer business.  If  we  didn't  have  to  come,  why  are  we 
here?  is  her  matter  of  fact  attitude.  She  was  evidently 
not  satisfied  with  what  she  could  learn  from  me  herself, 
so  one  day  she  called  to  her  aid  a  crony  of  hers,  a  woman 
of  50  wnth  a  fighting  face  and  straggly  hair  whom  I  had 
dubbed  "the  sthreeler,"  because  no  English  word  described 
her  so  adequately.  I  had  already  heard  the  Sthreeler's 
opinion  of  the  women  in  Paris — all  of  them.  It  would  have 
done  the  hussies  good  to  hear  what  she  thought  of  them. 
Now  she  turned  her  interrogatory  sword  point  at  me;  no 
parrying  about  her  methods — just  slash  and  slash  again. 

"Monsieur  has  three  vicaires."     "Yes,  Madame." 

"Then  why  has  M.  rAumonier  come  over  here?  Why  not 
send  one  of  the  Vicaires  and  stay  at  home  in  his  parish  ?" 

"But  none  of  the  vicaires  was  aumonier  of  the  Regiment; 
but  myself,  M.  le  Cure. 

"Oh,  perhaps  the  Germans  destroyed  your  parish  as  they 
did  that  of  our  present  cure." 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  43 

"No,  the  Germans  have  not  got  to  New  York  yet  so  my 
parish  is  still  safe." 

"Ah,  then,  I  have  it.  No  doubt  the  Government  pays  you 
more  as  aumonier  than  the  church  does  as  cure." 

This  was  said  with  such  an  evident  desire  to  justify  her 
good  opinion  of  me  as  a  rational  being  in  spite  of  apparent 
foolishness,  that  I  said :  "That  is  precisely  the  reason" ; 
and  we  turned  with  zest  to  the  unfailing  topic  of  the 
Parisiennes  with  their  jewels  and  paint  and  high  heels. 
Not  having  her  courage,  I  did  not  venture  to  ask  the 
sthreeler  if  she  did  not  really  envy  them. 

They  are  going  in  strong  for  education  in  the  A.  E.  F. 
and  we  have  lost  temporarily  the  services  of  many  of  our 
best  officers.  Lieutenant  Colonel  Reed  has  gone  off  to 
school  and  also  the  three  Majors  and  half  the  Captains. 
I  hope  they  are  getting  something  out  of  their  schooling 
for  nobody  here  is  learning  anything  except  how  to  lead  the 
life  of  a  tramp.  The  men  have  no  place  to  drill  or  to  shoot 
or  to  manoeuvre.  I  hear  we  are  moving  soon  to  fresh  fields 
further  south — Heaven  grant  it,  for  we  waste  time  here. 

GRAND 

December  23rd,  1917 
I  think  it  was  Horace  who  said  something  to  the  effect 
that  far-faring  men  change  the  skies  above  them  but  not 
the  hearts  within  them.  That  occurs  to  me  when  I  see  our 
lads  along  the  streets  of  this  ancient  Roman  town.  It  is 
old,  old,  old.  You  have  to  go  down  steps  to  get  to  the  floor 
of  the  700-year-old  Gothic  nave  of  the  church  because  the 
detritus  of  years  has  gradually  raised  the  level  of  the 
square;  and  the  tower  of  the  church,  a  huge  square  donjon 
wnth  walls  seven  feet  thick  slitted  for  defensive  bowmen, 
is  twice  as  old  as  the  nave.  And  it  has  the  ruins  of  an 
amphitheatre  and  a  well  preserved  mosaic  pavement  that 
date  back  to  the  third  century,  when  the  Caesars  had  a  big 
camp  here  to  keep  the  Gauls  in  order.     I  shan't  say  that 


44  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

tlie  men  arc  not  interested  in  these  antiquities.  They  are 
an  intelhgent  lot,  and  unsated  by  sight-seeing,  and  they 
give  more  attention  to  what  they  see  than  most  tourists 
would.  When  I  worked  the  history  of  the  place  into  my 
Sunday  sermon  I  could  see  that  everybody  was  wide  awake 
to  what  I  had  to  say. 

^  But  in  their  hearts  they  are  still  in  good  little  old  New 
York.  The  quips  and  slang  of  New  York  play  houses  are 
heard  on  the  streets  where  Caesar's  legionaries  chaffed  each 
other  in  Low  Latin.  Under  the  fifteen  centuries  old  tower 
Phil  Brady  maintains  the  worth  of  Flushing  because  Major 
Lawrence  hails  from  there.  Paul  Llaerting  and  Dr}'er  ex- 
change repartee  outside  the  shrine  of  St.  Libaire,  Virgin  and 
Martyr,  after  their  soldiers  orisons  at  his  tomb.  Charles 
Dietrich  and  Jim  Gormley  interrupt  my  broodings  over  the 
past  in  the  ruins  of  the  amphitheater  to  ask  me  news  about 
our  parish  in  the  Bronx. 

The  2nd  and  3rd  Battalions  are  not  in  such  an  antique 
setting,  but  in  two  villages  along  the  bare  hillsides  to  the 
south  of  us.  It  is  a  good  walk  to  get  to  them;  but  I  have 
my  reward.  When  I  get  to  the  2nd  Battalion,  if  the 
men  are  busy,  I  drop  in  on  Phil  Gargan  for  a  cup  of  cof- 
fee. I  am  always  reminded  of  my  visits  to  Ireland  by 
the  hospitality  I  encounter — so  warm  and  generous  and 
bustling  and  overwhelming.  I  get  my  coffee,  too  much  of 
it,  and  too  sweet,  and  hot  beyond  human  endurance,  and 
food  enough  offered  with  it  to  feed  a  platoon.  And  I  am 
warm  with  a  glow  that  no  steaming  drink  could  ever  pro- 
duce of  itself.  It  is  the  same  wherever  I  go.  For  instance 
if  my  steps  lead  me  to  the  3rd  Battalion  Pat  Boland  spices 
his  coffee  with  native  wit;  or  if  my  taste  inclines  me  to  tea 
I  look  up  Pat  Rogan  who  could  dig  up  a  cup  of  tea  in  the 
middle  of  a  polar  expedition. 

While  I  am  on  the  question  of  eating — always  an  inter- 
esting topic  to  a  soldier — let  me  say  a  word  for  French 
inns.  I  came  to  Grand  with  Regimental  Sergeant  Major 
Steinert,  ahead  of  the  Regiment  in  charge  of  a  billetting 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  45 

detail,  and  thus  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  establishment 
of  Madame  Gerard  at  the  Sign  of  the  Golden  Boar.  I 
have  seen  a  M.  Gerard  but,  as  in  all  well  regulated  fam- 
ilies, he  is  a  person  with  no  claim  to  figure  in  a  story.  I  am 
in  love  for  the  first  time,  and  with  Madame  Gerard.  Cap- 
able and  human  and  merry,  used  to  men  and  their  queer 
irrational  unfcniinine  ways,  and  quite  able  to  handle  them, 
hundreds  at  a  time.  A  joke,  a,  reprimand,  and  ever  and 
always  the  final  argument  of  a  good  meal — easy  as  easy. 
She  reigns  in  her  big  kitchen,  with  its  fireplace  where  the 
wood  is  carefully  managed  but  still  gives  heat  enough  to  put 
life  and  savor  into  the  hanging  pots  and  the  sizzling  turn- 
spits. Odors  of  Araby  the  blest!  And  she  serves  her 
meals  with  the  air  of  a  beneficent  old  Grande  Dame  of 
the  age  when  hospitality  was  a  test  of  greatness.  Private 
or  General — it  makes  no  difference  to  her.  The  same  food 
and  the  same  price  and  the  same  frank  motherly  humor — 
and  they  all  respond  with  feelings  that  are  common  to  all. 
I  sit  before  the  kitchen  fire  while  she  is  at  work,  and  talk 
about  the  war  and  religion  and  our  poor  soldiers  so  far 
from  their  mothers,  and  the  cost  of  food  and  the  fun  you 
can  get  out  of  life,  and  when  I  get  back  to  my  cold  room 
I  go  to  bed  thinking  of  how  much  I  have  learned,  and 
that  I  can  see  at  last  how  France  has  been  able  to  stand 
this  war  for  three  and  a  half  years. 

The  Colonel's  mess  is  at  the  Cure's  house.  It  too  is  a 
pleasant  place  to  be,  for  the  Colonel  lays  aside  his  official 
air  of  severity  when  he  comes  to  the  table,  and  is  his 
genial,  lovable  self.  The  Cure  dines  with  us — a  stalwart 
mountaineer  who  keeps  a  young  boar  in  his  back  yard  as  a 
family  pet.  One  would  have  thought  him  afraid  of  noth- 
ing. But  courage  comes  by  habit;  and  I  found  that  the 
Cure  had  his  weak  side.  His  years  had  not  accustomed  him 
to  the  freaks  of  a  drunken  man — a  testimonial  to  his  parish- 
ioners. We  had  a  cook,  an  old  Irishman,  who  could  give 
a  new  flavor  to  nectar  on  Olympus;  that  is,  if  he  didn't 
drink  too  much  of  it  first.    But  he  would,  trust  Paddy  for 


/ 

\ 


46  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

that,  even  if  threatened  with  Vulcan's  fate  of  being  pitched 
out  headfirst  for  his  offense. 

One  day  Tom  Heaney  and  Billy  Hearn  came  running  for 
me.  Paddy  on  the  rampage !  The  aged  bonne  in  hys- 
terics. The  Cure  at  his  wits'  end.  Come !  I  went.  I 
found  Paddy  red-eyed  and  excited,  and  things  in  a  mess.  I 
curtly  ordered  him  into  a  chair,  ^nd  sent  for  Doc.  Houghton, 
our  mess  officer,  to  do  justice.  Meanwhile  I  studied  a  map 
on  the  wall,  with  my  back  turned  to  the  offender,  and 
the  following  one-sided  dialogue  ensued — like  a  telephone 
scene  at  a  play. 

"It's  that's  making  me  mad."    A  pause, 

"I  don't  like  you  anyway."    A  pause. 

"You're  no  good  of  a  priest.  If  I  was  dying  I  wouldn't" — 
(reconsidering) — "I  hope  to  God  when  I'm  dying  I  won't 
have  to  put  up  with  the  likes  of  you."    A  long  pause. 

"I've  long  had  me  opinion  of  you,  I'll  tell  it  to  you  if  you 
like." 

A  pause — with  me  saying  to  myself  "Now  you'll  get  the 
truth." 

"I'll  tell  it  to  you.  I've  been  wanting  to  do  it  time  and 
times.  .  .  .  You  smoke  cigarettes  with  the  Officers,  that's 
what  you  do."  A  sigh  of  relief,  and  the  thought  "I  could  have 
said  more  than  that  myself." 

Then  in  bursts  Colonel  Hine  and  Paddy  was  hustled  away 
for  punishment.  But  I  know  what  will  happen.  We  shall 
eat  army  food  au  naturcl  for  a  week  or  so;  and  some  noon 
the  meal  will  be  so  good  that  we  shall  all  eat  more  than  is 
good  for  men  with  w'ork  still  to  do,  and  nobody  shall  ask 
a  question  about  it,  for  everybody  will  know  that  Paddy, 
God  bless  him !  is  back  on  the  job  once  more.  Of  course 
I  have  a  special  liking  for  him  because  when  he  was  in  a 
mood  to  denounce  me  he  let  me  off  so  light, 

GRAND 

December  25th,  1917 

If  there  is  one  day  in  all  the  year  that  wanderers  from 

home  cannot  afford  to  forget  it  is  Christmas.     The  Com- 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  47 

pany  Commanders  have  had  their  Mess  Sergeants  scouring 
the  countryside  for  eatables. 

It  was  my  business  to  give  them  a  religious  celebration 
that  they  would  remember  for  many  a  year  and  that  they 
would  write  about  enthusiastically  to  the  folks  at  home, 
who  would  be  worrying  about  the  lonesome  existence  of 
their  boys  in  France.  The  French  military  authorities  and 
the  Bishop  of  the  diocese  had  united  in  prohibiting  Mid- 
night Masses  on  account  of  the  lights.  But  General  Leni- 
han,  the  Mayor,  and  the  Cure  decided  that  we  were  too 
far  from  the  front  to  worry  about  that,  and  it  was  arranged 
tout  de  suite.  I  knew  that  confessions  and  communions 
would  be  literally  by  the  thousands,  so  with  the  aid  of  Joyce 
Kilmer  and  Frank  Driscoll,  ex-Jesuit-novice,  I  got  up  a 
scheme  for  confessions  of  simple  sins  in  English  and 
French,  and  set  my  French  confreres  to  work ;  the  Cure, 
a  priest-sergeant  in  charge  of  a  wood  cutting  detail,  a 
brancard icr,  and  another  priest  who  was  an  officer  of  the 
artiller}- — all  on  the  qui  vivc  about  the  task.  Christmas  Eve 
found  us  all  busy  until  midnight.  I  asked  one  of  the  men 
how  he  liked  the  idea  of  going  to  confession  to  a  priest 
who  cannot  speak  English.  "Fine,  Father,"  he  said  with  a 
grin,  "All  he  could  do  was  give  me  a  penance,  but  you'd  have 
given  me  hell."  Luckily  the  church  was  vastly  larger  than 
the  present  needs  of  the  town,  for  everybody,  soldiers  and 
civilians,  came.  General  Lenihan  and  Colonel  Hine  and 
the  Brigade  and  the  Regimental  Staffs  occupied  seats  in  the 
sanctuary  which  was  also  crowded  with  soldiers.  The  local 
choir  sang  the  Mass  and  I  preached.  Our  lads  sang  the 
old  hymns,  "The  Snow  Lay  on  the  Ground,"  "The  Little 
Town  of  Bethlehem,"  and  all,  French  and  Americans,  joined 
in  the  ancient  and  hallowed  strains  of  the  Adcste  Fideles 
until  the  vaults  resounded  with  Venite  Adoreimis  Dominmn. 
It  took  four  priests  a  long  time  to  give  Communion  to  the 
throng  of  pious  soldiers  and  I  went  to  bed  at  2  :oo  A.  M. 
happy  with  the  thought  that,  exiles  though  we  are,  we  cele- 
brated the  old  feast  in  high  and  holy  fashion. 


48  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

Christmas  afternoon  we  had  general  services  in  the  big 
market  shed.  The  band  played  the  old  Christmas  airs  and 
everybody  joined  in,  until  the  square  was  ringing  with  our 
pious  songs. 

Everybody  had  a  big  Christmas  dinner.  The  Quarter- 
master had  sent  the  substantial  basis  for  it  and  for  extra 
trimmings  the  Captains  bought  up  everything  the  country 
afforded.  They  had  ample  funds  to  do  it,  thanks  to  our 
Board  of  Trustees,  who  had  supplied  us  lavishly  with  funds. 
The  boxes  sent  through  the  Women's  Auxiliary  have  not 
yet  reached  us.  It  is  just  as  well,  for  we  depart  tomorrow 
on  a  four-day  hike  over  snowy  roads  and  the  less  we  have 
to  carry  the  better. 

LONGEAU 

January   ist,   1918 

I  cannot  tell  just  what  hard  fates  this  New  Year  may 
have  in  store  for  us,  but  I  am  sure  that  no  matter  how  try- 
ing they  may  be  they  will  not  make  us  forget  the  closing 
days  of  19 17.  We  left  our  villages  in  the  Vosges  die  morn- 
ing after  Christmas  Day.  From  the  outset  it  was  evident 
that  we  were  going  to  be  up  against  a  hard  task.  It 
snowed  on  Christmas,  and  the  roads  we  were  to  take  were 
mean  country  roads  over  the  foothills  of  the  Vosges  Moun- 
tains. New  mules  were  sent  to  us  on  Christmas  Eve. 
They  were  not  shod  for  winter  weather,  and  many  of  them 
were  absolutely  unbroken  to  harness,  the  harness  provided 
moreover  being  French  and  ill-fitting.  To  get  it  on  the 
mules  big  Jim  Hillery  had  to  throw  them  first  on  the  stable 
floor. 

It  was  ever}^body's  hike,  and  everybody's  purgatory ;  but 
to  my  mind  it  was  in  a  special  way  the  epic  of  the  supply 
company  and  the  detachments  left  to  help  them.  Nobody 
ever  makes  any  comiment  when  supplies  are  on  hand  on 
time.  In  modern  city  life  we  get  into  the  way  of  taking 
this  for  granted,  as  if  food  were  heaven-sent  like  manna, 
and  we  give  little  thought  to  the  planning  and  labor  it  has 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  49 

taken  to  provide  us.  On  a  hike  the  Infantry  will  get  through 
— there  is  never  any  doubt  of  that.  They  may  be  foot- 
sore, hungry,  broken-backed,  frozen,  half  dead,  but  they 
will  get  through.  The  problem  is  to  get  the  mules  through ; 
and  it  is  an  impossil)le  one  very  often  without  human  intel- 
ligence and  human  lal>or.  On  this  hike  the  marching  men 
carried  no  reserve  rations,  an  inexcusable  oversight.  No 
village  could  feed  them  even  if  there  was  money  to  pay 
for  the  food;  and  the  m.en  could  not  eat  till  the  Company 
wagons  arrived  with  the  rations  and  field  ranges. 

The  situation  for  Captain  Mangan's  braves  looked  des- 
perate from  the  start.  A  mile  out  of  town  the  wagons  were 
all  across  the  road,  as  the  lead  teams  were  not  trained  to) 
answer  the  reins.  The  battle  was  on.  Captain  Mangan 
with  Lieutenant  Kinney,  a  Past  Grand  Master  when  it  comes 
to  wagon  trains,  organized  their  forces.  They  had  experi- 
enced helpers — Sergeant  Ferdinando,  a  former  circus  man, 
Sergeant  Bob  Goss  and  Regimental  Supply  Sergeant  Joe 
Flannery,  who  will  be  looking  for  new  wars  to  go  to  when 
"he  is  four  score  and  ten.  It  would  be  impossible  to  relate 
in  detail  the  struggles  of  the  next  four  days;  but  that 
train  got  through  from  day  to  day  only  by  the  fighting 
spirit  of  soldiers  who  seldom  have  to  fire  a  rifle.  Again 
and  again  they  came  to  hills  where  every  wagon  was  stalled. 
The  best  teams  had  to  be  unhitched  and  attached  to  each 
(Vagon  separately  until  the  hill  was  won.  Over  and  over 
the  toil-worn  men  would  have  to  cover  the  same  ground  till 
the  work  was  done,  and  in  tough  places  they  had  to  spend 
their  failing  strength  tugging  on  a  rope  or  pushing  a 
wheel.  Wagoners  sat  on  their  boxes  with  hands  and  feet 
freezing  and  never  uttered  a  complaint.  The  wagons  were 
full  of  food  but  no  man  asked  for  a  mite  of  it — they 
were  willing  to  wait  till  the  companies  ahead  would  get  their 
ehare. 

The  old  time  men  who  had  learned  their  business  on 
the  Border  were  naturally  the  best.  Harry  Horgan,  ex- 
cowboy,  could  get  anything  out  of  mules  that  mules  could 


so  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

■do.  Jim  Regan,  old  1898  man,  had  his  four  new  mules 
•christened  and  pulling  in  answer  to  their  names  before 
a  greenhorn  could  gather  up  the  reins.  Larkin  and  young 
Heffernan  and  Barney  Lowe  and  Tim  Coffee  were  always 
first  out  and  first  in,  but  always  found  time  to  come  back 
and  take  the  lines  for  some  novice  to  get  his  wagon 
through  a  hard  place.  Al  Rich  ford,  Ed  Menrose,  Gene 
Mortenson,  Willie  Fagan,  Arthur  Nulty,  Wagoner  Joe  Sea- 
^riff  and  good  old  Pat  Prendergast  did  heroic  work. 
"Father"  James  McMahon  made  me  prouder  of  my  own 
title.  Slender  Jimmy  Benson  got  every  ounce  of  power  out 
of  his  team  without  ever  forgetting  he  belonged  to  the  Holy 
Name  Society.  Sergeant  Lacey,  Maynooth  man  and  com- 
pany clerk,  proved  himself  a  good  man  in  every  Irish  sense 
of  the  word.  Hillery  and  Tumulty,  horseshoers;  Charles) 
Henning  of  the  commissary,  and  Joe  Healy,  cook,  made 
themselves  mule-skinners  once  more,  and  worked  with 
energies  that  never  flagged. 

Lieutenant  Henry  Bootz  came  along  at  the  rear  of  the 
Infantry  column  to  pick  up  stragglers.  The  tiredest  and 
most  dispirited  got  new  strength  from  his  strong  heart.  'T 
think  I'm  going  to  die,"  said  one  broken  lad  of  eighteen. 
"You  can't  die  without  my  permission,"  laughed  the  big 
Lieutenant.  "And  I  don't  intend  to  give  it.  I'll  take  your 
pack,  but  you'll  have  to  hike."  And  hike  he  did  for  seven 
miles  farther  that  day,  and  all  the  way  for  two  days  more. 
The  first  day  Bootz  threatened  to  tie  stragglers  to  the 
wagons.  The  remaining  days  he  took  all  that  could  move 
without  an  ambulance  and  tied  the  wagons  to  them.  And 
they  had  to  pull. 

Captain  Mangan,  the  most  resourceful  of  commanders, 
was  working  in  his  own  way  to  relieve  the  strain.  One 
day  he  took  possession  of  a  passing  car  and  got  to  the 
H.  O.  of  a  French  Division  where  the  kindly  disposed 
French  Officers  were  easily  persuaded  to  send  camions  to 
carry  provisions  ahead,  to  be  stored  for  the  troops  at  the 
terminus  of  the  day's  march.     Horses  were  rented   from 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  51 

the  farmers,  or,  if  they  were  stiff  about  it,  abruptly  com- 
mandeered.   That  wagon  train  had  to  get  through. 

It  got  throug^h ;  but  sometimes  it  was  midnight  or  after 
before  it  got  through ;  and  meanwhile  the  line  companies 
had  their  own  sufferings  and  sacrifices.  They  hiked  with 
full  packs  on  ill-made  and  snow-covered  roads  over  hilly 
country.  At  the  end  of  the  march  they  found  themselves 
in  villages  (four  or  five  of  them  to  the  regiment),  billetted 
in  barns,  usually  without  fire,  fuel  or  food.  They  huddled 
together  for  the  body  warmth,  and  sought  refuge  from  cold 
and  hunger  in  sleep.  When  the  wagons  came  in,  their  food 
supplies  were  fresh  meat  and  fresh  vegetables,  all  frozen 
through  and  needing  so  much  time  to  cook  that  many  of 
the  men  refused  to  rise  in  the  night  to  eat  it.  Breakfast 
was  the  one  real  meal;  at  midday  the  mess  call  blew,  but 
there  was  nothing  to  eat. 

When  they  got  up  in  the  morning  their  shoes  were  frozen 
stiff  and  they  had  to  burn  paper  and  straw  in  them  before 
they  could  get  them  on.  Men  hiked  with  frozen  feet,  with 
shoes  so  broken  that  their  feet  were  in  the  snow ;  many 
could  be  seen  in  wooden  sabots  or  with  their  feet  wrapped 
in  burlap.  Hands  got  so  cold  and  frost-bitten  that  the 
rifles  almost  dropped  from  their  fingers.  Soldiers  fell  in 
the  snow  and  arose  and  staggered  on  and  dropped  again. 
The  strong  helped  the  weak  by  encouragement,  by  sharp 
biting  words  when  sympathy  would  only  increase  weak- 
ness, and  by  the  practical  help  of  sharing  their  burdens. 
They  got  through  on  spirit.  The  tasks  were  impossible 
for  mere  flesh  and  blood,  but  what  flesh  and  blood  cannot 
do,  spirit  can  make  them  do.  It  was  like  a  battle.  We  had 
losses  as  in  a  battle — men  who  were  carried  to  hospitals 
because  they  had  kept  going  long  after  their  normal  powers 
were  expended.  It  was  a  terrible  experience.  But  one 
thing  we  all  feel  now — we  have  not  the  slightest  doubt 
that  men  who  have  shown  the  endurance  that  these  men 
have  shown  will  give  a  good  account  of  themselves  in  any 
kind  of  battle  they  are  put  into. 


52  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

LONGEAU 

January  loth,  1918 

The  Regiment  is  in  five  villages  south  of  the  old  Fortress 
town  of  Langres  in  the  Haute  Marne;  Headquarters  and 
Supply  in  Longeau,  ist  Battalion  in  Percey,  2nd  in  Cohons, 
the  3rd  in  Baissey  and  the  Machine  Gun  Company  in 
Brennes.  They  are  pleasant  prosperous  little  places  (in- 
habited by  cultivateurs  with  a  sprinkling  of  bourgeois)  the 
red  roofs  clustering  picturesquely  along  the  lower  slopes  of 
the  rolling  country.  None  of  them  is  more  than  an  hour's 
walk  from  our  center  at  Longeau.  The  men  are  mostly  in 
the  usual  hayloft  billets,  though  some  companies  have 
Adrian  barracks  where  they  sleep  on  board  floors.  Apart 
from  sore  feet  from  that  abominable  hike,  and  the  suffering 
from  cold  due  to  the  difficulty  of  procuring  fuel,  we  are 
fairly  comfortable. 

The  officers  are  living  in  comparative  luxury.  I  am  estab- 
lished with  a  nice  sweet  elderly  lady.  I  reach  the  house 
through  a  court  that  runs  back  of  a  saloon — which  leaves 
me  open  to  comments  from  the  ungodly.  The  house  is  a 
model  of  neatness,  as  Madame  is  a  childless  widow,  and 
after  the  manner  of  such,  has  espoused  herself  to  her  home. 
She  is  very  devout,  and  glad  to  have  M.  I'Aumonier  in  the 
house,  but  I  am  a  sore  trial  to  her,  as  I  have  a  constant  run 
of  callers,  all  of  them  wearing  muddy  hobnailed  brogans. 
She  says  nothing  to  me,  but  I  can  hear  her  at  all  hours  of 
the  day  lecturing  little  Mac  about  doors  and  windows  and 
sawdust  and  dirt.  I  never  hear  him  say  anything  in  reply, 
except  "Oui,  Madame,"  but  somehow  he  seems  to  under- 
stand her  voluble  French  and  they  get  along  very  well  to- 
gether. I  notice  that  our  lads  always  strike  up  a  quick 
acquaintance  with  the  motherly  French  women.  They  work 
together,  cooking  at  the  fireplaces  or  washing  clothes  in 
the  community  fountain,  keeping  up  some  sort  of  friendly 
gossip  and  laughing  all  the  while,  though  I  never  can  un- 
derstand how  they  manage  it,  for  the  villagers  never  learn 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  53 

any  English  and  the  soldiers  have  not  more  than  forty  words 
of  French.     After  all  a  language  is  only  a  makeshift  for    . 
expressing  ourselves.    "Ou'est-ce  que  c'est" — "Kesky,"  and 
pointing  supplies  the  nouns,  gestures  the  verbs,  and  facial 
expressions  the  adjectives.  '     kH 

LONGE.\U 

January  21st,  1918 

Last  night  the  church  bells  rang  at  midnight ;  and  wak- 
ing, I  said:  "Bombers  overhead !"  A  minute  later  I  heard 
the  cry  Fire!  Fire!  and  the  bugles  raising  the  same  alarm. 
It  was  a  big  stable  at  the  south  end  of  the  town — we  had 
gasoline  stored  in  it  and  some  soldier  was  careless.  The 
street  was  thronged  in  an  instant  with  running  soldiers  and 
civilians.  The  village  firemen  or  pompiers  came  running  up 
at  a  plowman  gait — looked  the  fire  over — and  went  back  to 
put  on  their  proper  uniforms.  One  old  lad  came  all  the 
way  from  Percey  in  a  gendarme's  chapeau.  He  could  not 
properly  try  to  put  out  a  fire  in  that  headgear,  so  he  w^ent 
all  the  way  back  and  arrived  at  last,  pufiing  but  satisfied, 
in  the  big  pompier  nickel-plated  helmet.  Their  big  pump 
was  pulled  up  to  Longeau,  and  the  hose  was  laid  with  the 
proper  amount  of  ceremony  and  shouting,  and  the  stream 
finally  put  on  the  blazing  shed.  The  remainder  of  the  popu- 
lation displayed  little  of  the  proverbial  French  excitability. 
They  looked  on  with  the  air  of  men  who  can  enjoy  a  good  ~^ 
spectacle,  happy  in  the  thought  that  the  rich  American  Gov- 
ernment would  have  to  pay  for  it. 

The  soldiers  were  happy  too  at  having  a  chance  to  fight 
something.  Colonel  Barker  gave  orders  in  his  quiet  way, 
which  Captains  Anderson  and  Mangan  put  into  execution. 
The  fountain  ran  out  and  bucket  lines  were  formed.  I  am 
afraid  that  some  of  the  contents  instead  of  getting  to  the 
fire  was  dumped  on  the  gaudy  uniforms  of  the  funny  old 
pompiers,  who  insisted  upon  running  around  giving  orders 
that  nobody  could  understand.     This  is  the  second  French 


54  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

fire  we  have  witnessed  and  the  general  verdict  is  that  our 
moving  picture  people  have  missed  the  funniest  unstudied 
episode  left  in  the  world  by  not  putting  a  French  village 
fire  department  on  the  screen.  It  was  a  good  show  in 
every  way — but  incidentally  the  building  was  a  total  loss. 


LONGEAU 

January  25th,  1918 

I  walked  over  to  Cohons  today  and  dropped  in  on  Com- 
pany H.  Instead  of  having  to  make  my  visit  through  the 
scattered  billets  that  line  the  entrance  to  the  valley  I  found 
what  looked  like  the  whole  Company  along  the  roadside  in 
vehemently  gesticulating  groups.  I  hurried  to  find  what 
the  trouble  might  be.  "What's  the  matter  here,"  I  asked. 
Val  Dowling,  the  supply  Sergeant,  picked  a  uniform  out 
of  a  pile  and  held  it  up.  "Look  at  the  damn  thing?  Ex- 
cuse me,  Father,  but  you'll  say  as  bad  when  you  look  at  it. 
They  want  us  to  wear  this."  He  held  it  out  as  if  it  had  con- 
tagion in  it,  and  I  saw  it  was  a  British  tunic,  brass  buttons 
and  all.  I  disappointed  my  audience — I  didn't  swear  out 
loud.  "Got  nice  shiny  buttons,"  I  said.  "What's  the  mat- 
ter with  it?"  What  was  the  matter  with  it?  Did  I  know 
it  was  a  British  uniform?  Frank  McGlynn  of  Manhattan 
and  Bill  McGorry  of  Long  Island  City  were  as  hot  as  Bill 
Fleming  or  Pat  Travers  or  Chris  O'Keefe  or  William 
Smythe.  "They  look  a  little  betther  this  way,"  said  John 
Thornton,  holding  up  one  with  the  buttons  clipped  off. 
"That's  all  right,"  I  said,  "but  don't  get  yourselves  into 
trouble  destroying  government  property."  Throuble,"  said 
Martin  Higgins.  "What  the  blazes  do  they  mane  by  in- 
sultin'  min  fightin'  for  thim  like  this.  I'd  stand  hangin' 
rather  than  put  wan  of  thim  rags  on  me  back." 

I  went  home  in  a  black  mood,  all  the  blacker  because  I 
did  not  want  to  say  what  I  felt  before  the  men;  and  when 
I  got  to  mess  I  found  Lawrence,  Anderson  and  Mangan  and 
young  McKenna  as  sore  as  myself.     We  all  exploded  to- 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  55 

gether,  and  Colonel  Barker,  at  first  mildly  interested,  seemed 
to  get  worried.  "Well,"  he  said,  "at  least  they  wouldn't 
object  if  they  had  to  wear  English  shoes,  would  they?" 
"No,"  I  said.  "They'd  have  the  satisfaction  of  stamping 
on  them."  The  laugh  at  my  poor  joke  ended  the  discussion, 
but  I  waited  after  supper  to  talk  with  Colonel  Barker. 
I  didn't  want  him  worried  about  us,  and  he  naturally 
couldn't  know;  but  I  felt  he  could  appreciate  our  attitude 
from  his  own  very  strong  anti-German  feelings.  "Colonel," 
I  said.  "We  do  not  want  you  to  feel  that  you  have  a  regi- 
ment of  divided  loyalty  or  dubious  reliability  on  your 
hands.  We  are  all  volunteers  for  this  war.  If  you  put 
our  fellows  in  line  alongside  a  bunch  of  Tommies,  they 
would  onlyjfight  the  harder  to  show. the  English  who_gre 
the  better  men,  though  I  would  not  guarantee  that  there 
would  not  be  an  occasional  row  in  a  rest  camp  if  we  were 
billeted  with  them.  There  are  soldiers  with  us  who  left 
Ireland  to  avoid  service  in  the  British  Army.  But  as  soon 
as  we  got  into  the  war,  these  men,  though  not  yet  citizens, 
volunteered  to  fight  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes. 

"We  have  our  racial  feelings,  but  these  do  not  affect  our 
loyalty  to  the  United  States.  You  can  understand  it.  There 
were  times  during  the  past  two  )^ears  when  if  England  had 
not  restrained  her  John  Bull  tendencies  on  the  sea  we  might 
have  gotten  into  a  series  of  difficulties  that  would  have  led  to 
a  war  with  her.  In  that  case  Germany  would  have  been 
the  Ally.  You  are  a  soldier,  and  you  would  have  fought, 
suppressing  your  own  dislike  for  that  Ally.  But  supposing 
in  the  course  of  the  war  we  were  short  of  tin  hats  and 
they  asked  you  to  put  on  one  of  those  Boche  helmets?" 

The  Colonel  whacked  the  table,  stung  to  sudden  anger  at 
the  picture.  Then  he  laughed,  "You  have  a  convincing  way 
of  putting  things,  Father.  I'll  see  that  they  clothe  my  men 
hereafter  in  American  uniforms." 

And  though,  as  I  found  later,  many  of  the  offensive 
uniforms  had  been  torn  to  ribbons  by  the  men,   nobody 


56  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ever  made  any  inquiry  about  "destruction  of  government 
property." 

PERCEY 

February  2nd,  1918 

I  usually  manage  to  get  to  two  different  towns  for  my 
Church  services  Sunday  mornings.  General  Lenihan  al- 
ways picks  me  up  in  his  machine  and  goes  with  me  tO'  my 
early  service,  at  which  he  acts  as  acolyte  for  the  Mass,  a 
duty  which  he  performs  with  the  correctness  of  a  sem- 
inarian, enhanced  by  his  fine  soldierly  face  and  bearing 
and  his  crown  of  white  hair.  The  men  are  deeply  im- 
pressed by  it,  and  there  are  few  letters  that  go  home  that 
do  not  speak  of  it.  He  brought  me  back  from  Cohons  this 
morning  and  dropped  me  off  at  Percey,  where  I  had  a  later 
Mass.  These  French  villagers  are  different  from  our  own 
home  folks  in  that  they  want  long  services ;  they  seem  to 
feel  that  their  locality  is  made  little  of,  if  they  do  not 
have  everything  that  city  churches  can  boast,  and  I  some- 
times think,  a  few  extras  that  local  tradition  calls  for.  It 
is  hard  on  me,  for  I  am  a  Low  Church  kind  of  Catholic 
myself;  and  besides  "soldier's  orisons"  are  traditionally 
short  ones.  The  only  consolation  I  have  here  in  Percey  is 
that  the  old  septuagenarian  who  leads  the  service  for  the 
people  sings  in  such  a  way  that  I  can  render  thanks  to 
Heaven  that  at  last  it  has  been  given  to  my  ears  to  hear 
raised  in  that  sacred  place  the  one  voice  I  have  ever  heard 
that  is  worse  than  my  own. 

I  called  on  Donovan  this  evening  and  found  him  sitting 
in  a  big,  chilly  chamber  in  the  old  chateau  in  front  of  a 
fire  that  refused  to  burn.  He  had  had  a  hard  day  and  was 
still  busy  with  orders  for  the  comfort  of  men  and  animals. 
"Father,"  he  said,  "I  have  just  been  thinking  that  what 
novelists  call  romance  is  only  what  men's  memories  hold 
of  the  past,  with  all  actual  realization  of  the  discomforts 
left  out,  and  only  the  dangers  past  and  difficulties  con- 
quered remaining  in  imagination.     What  difference  is  there 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  57 

between  us  and  the  fellow  who  has  landed  at  the  Chateau 
in  Stanley  Weyman  or  Robert  Stevenson's  interesting 
stories;  who  has  come  in  after  a  hard  ride  and  is  giving 
orders  for  the  baiting  of  his  horse  or  the  feeding  of  his 
retinue,  as  he  sits,  with  his  jackboots  pulled  down,  before 
the  unwilling  fire  and  snuffs  the  candle  to  get  sufficient  light 
to  read  his  orders  for  the  next  day's  march."  I  get  much 
comfort  from  the  Major's  monologue.  It  supplies  an  ex- 
cellent romantic  philosophy  with  which  to  face  the  sordid 
discomforts  which  are  the  most  trying  part  of  war. 


BAISSEY 

February  8th,  191 8 
Over  today  and  dined  at  Hurley's  mess.  Pat  Dowling 
told  of  a  rather  mysterious  thing  that  happened  to  him  while 
he  was  a  Sergeant  in  the  regular  army.  He  was  sent  from 
one  post  to  another,  a  distance  of  two  hundred  miles,  with 
a  sealed  letter  which  he  delivered  to  the  Commanding  Of- 
ficer, who  opened  it,  read  it,  and  said :  "Sergeant,  you  wnll 
return  to  your  ow^n  post  immediately."  "I  have  often 
wondered,"  said  Pat,  "what  could  have  been  in  that  letter." 
"I  can  tell  you,"  said  Tom  Martin,  in  his  quiet  way.  "Well, 
what  was  in  it?"  "That  letter  read,  Tf  you  like  the  looks 
of  this  man,  keep  him.'  " 

LONGEAU 

February  loth,  1918 

The  Regiment  has  made  huge  progress  in  military  mat- 
ters during  the  past  month.  I  go  over  to  Cohons  and  the 
new  French  Chauchat  automatics  are  barking  merrily  at 
the  hill  that  climbs  from  the  road.  At  Percey  I  see  our 
erstwhile  baseball  artists  learning  an  English  overhead  bowd- 
ing  delivery  for  hurling  hand  grenades  at  a  pit,  where  they 
explode  noisily  and  harmlessly.  At  Baissey  Major  ]\Ioyna- 
han  walks  me  up  the  steep  hill  to  show  me  his  beautiful  sys- 
tem of  trenches,  though  I  see  no  reflection  of  his  enthusiasm 


68  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

in  the  faces  of  Jerry  Sheehan  or  Jim  Sullivan — they  had  the 
hard  job  of  helping  to  dig  them.  West  of  the  town  against 
the  steep  base  of  the  highest  hill  Lieutenants  O'Brien  and 
Cunningham  with  the  37  mm.  or  one-pound  cannon,  and 
Lieutenants  Walsh  and  Keveny  with  the  Stokes  mortars 
are  destroying  the  fair  face  of  nature.  Vociferous  young 
Lieutenants  are  urging  the  men  to  put  snap  into  their 
bayonet  lunges  at  stuffed  mannikins. 

I  had  a  little  clash  of  my  own  with  some  of  these  en- 
thusiastic youngsters  early  in  the  game.  In  the  British 
school  of  the  bayonet  they  teach  that  the  men  ought  to 
be  made  to  curse  while  doing  these  exercises.  I  see  neither 
grace  nor  sense  in  it.  If  a  man  swears  in  the  heat  of  a 
battle  I  don't  even  say  that  God  will  forgive  it;  I  don't 
believe  He  would  notice  it.  But  this  organized  blasphemy 
is  an  offense.  And  it  is  a  farce — a  bit  of  Cockney  Drill 
Sergeant  blugginess  to  conceal  their  lack  of  better  qualities. 
If  they  used  more  brains  in  their  fighting  and  less  blood  and 
guts  they  would  be  further  on  than  they  are.  Our  fellows 
will  do  more  in  battle  by  keeping  their  heads  and  using  the 
natural  cool  courage  they  have  than  by  working  themselves 
up  into  a  fictitious  rage  to  hide  their  fears. 

Latterly  we  have  had  the  excellent  services  of  a  Bat- 
talion of  French  Infantry  to  help  us  in  our  training.  They 
have  been  through  the  whole  bloody  business  and  wear  that 
surest  proof  of  prowess,  the  Fourragere.  I  asked  some  of 
the  old  timers  amongst  them  how  much  use  they  had  made 
of  the  bayonet.  They  all  said  that  they  had  never  seen  a 
case  when  one  line  of  bayonets  met  another.  Sometimes 
they  were  used  in  jumping  intO'  a  trench,  but  generally 
when  it  came  to  bayonets  one  side  was  running  away. 

The  "Y"  is  on  the  job  and  has  some  sort  of  place  in  each 
town.  With  me  is  Percy  Atkins,  a  good  man  with  only  one 
fault — he  is  working  himself  to  death  in  spite  of  my  trying 
to  boss  him  into  taking  care  of  himself. 

We  have  suffered  a  real  pang  in  the  transfer  of  Colonel 
Hine  to  the  Railway  Service.    It  gives  a  foretaste  of  what 


IN  TRAINING  ABROAD  59 

we  are  to  be  up  against  in  this  war.  There  is  evidently  to 
be  no  regard  for  feehngs  or  established  relations  of  de- 
pendency or  intimacy,  but  just  put  men  in  where  they  will 
be  considered  to  fit  best.  I  was  ready  for  that  after  the 
battles  began,  but  it  is  starting  already.  First  Reed,  now 
Hine.  I  shall  miss  Colonel  Hine  very  much — a  courteous 
gentleman,  a  thorough  soldier,  a  good  friend.  He  was  a 
railroad  man  for  many  years  and  they  say  he  is  needed 
there.     God  prosper  him  always  wherever  he  goes. 

His  successor  was  picked  by  General  Pershing  from  his 
own  staff:  Colonel  John  \V.  Barker,  a  West  Pointer,  who 
had  seen  much  service  and  had  been  on  duty  in  France 
since  die  beginning  of  the  war.  He  is  a  manly  man,  strong 
of  face,  silent  of  speech,  and  courteous  of  manner.  We 
have  learned  to  like  him  already — we  always  like  a  §:oqd 
soldier.  We  are  also  beginning  to  get  some  real  training, 
as  the  weather  is  more  favorable  and  our  officers  are  getting 
back  from  school. 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR 

ARBRE   HAUT 

March  ist,  191 8 

The  trenches  at  last!  We  have  all  read  descriptions 
of  them  and  so  had  our  preconceived  notions.  The  novelty 
is  that  we  are  in  a  thick  woods.  You  go  out  from  Luneville 
(where  we  have  been  having  the  unwonted  joys  of  city  life 
for  a  week  or  so)  along  the  flat  valley  of  the  Vesouze 
to  Croixmare,  and  east  to  Camp  New  York,  where  some 
Adrian  barracks,  floating  like  Noah's  Arks  in  a  sea  of  mud, 
house  the  battalion  in  reserve ;  then  up  a  good  military  road 
through  the  Forest  of  Parroy  to  Arbre  Haut,  where  a 
deep  dugout  forty  feet  underground  shelters  the  Colonel 
and  his  headquarters.  A  mile  further  on,  at  Rouge  Bou- 
quet, one  arrives  at  a  BattaHon  Post  of  Command  dugout 
now  occupied  by  Major  Donovan,  Lieutenants  Ames,  Irving, 
Lacey  and  Captain  Mercier,  an  energetic,  capable  and  agree- 
able ofiicer  of  the  French  ]\Iission.  Duck-board  paths 
lead  in  various  directions  through  peaceful  looking  woods 
to  a  sinuous  line  of  trenches  which  were,  when  we  arrived 
in  them,  in  considerable  need  of  repair.  Company  D,  under 
Captain  McKenna,  had  the  honor  of  being  first  in  the  lines. 
They  were  followed  by  Companies  B  and  A,  Company  C 
being  in  support.  Off  duty  the  men  live  in  mean  little 
dugouts  thinly  roofed,  poorly  floored,  wet  and  cold.  But 
they  are  happy  at  being  on  the  front  at  last,  and  look  on 
the  discomforts  as  part  of  the  game.  Their  only  kick  is 
that  it  is  too  quiet.  Their  main  sport  is  going  out  on  patrols 
by  night  or  day  to  scout  through  "No  Man's  Land,"  to 

60 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  61 

cut  wires,  and  stir  things  up  generally.  With  our  artillery- 
throwing  over  shells  from  the  rear  and  our  impatient  in- 
fantry prodding  the  enemy,  this  sector  will  not  be  long 
a  quiet  one. 

CROIX  MARE 

March  loth,  1918 
We  have  had  our  first  big  blow,  and  we  are  still  reeling 
under  the  pain  and  sorrow  of  it.  Our  ist  Battalion  left 
the  trenches  with  few  casualties  to  pay  for  their  ten  days  of 
continuous  work  at  trench  and  wire  mending  and  night 
patrols.  Arthur  Trayer  and  John  Lyons  of  Company  D 
were  the  first  to  gain  their  wound  chevrons.  On  March 
5th  the  2nd  Battalion  began  to  move  company  by  company 
from  Camp  New  York.  I  spent  the  afternoon  before  with 
each  unit  attending  to  their  spiritual  needs,  and  ending 
the  day  with  a  satisfactory  feeling  of  having  left  nothing 
undone.  I  was  with  Company  E  on  March  6th  and  will 
always  retain  a  recollection  of  certain  youngsters  who  stayed 
for  a  little  friendly  personal  chat  after  confession,  like 
Arthur  Hegney,  Eddie  Kelly,  Steve  Navin,  Arthur  Christ- 
fully,  George  Adkins,  Phil  Finn;  while  Steve  Derrig  and 
Michael  Ahearn  with  Bailey,  Halligan  and  McKiernan 
were  rounding  up  the  bunch  to  keep  me  going. 

The  Company  went  out  in  the  early  morning  of  March 
7th  to  relieve  Company  A,  and  soon  had  the  position  taken 
over.  About  4  P.  M.  the  enemy  began  a  terrific  shelling 
with  heavy  minenwerfers  on  the  position  at  Rocroi.  The 
big  awkward  v;abbling  aerial  torpedoes  began  coming  over, 
each  making  a  tremendous  hole  where  it  hit  and  sending 
up  clouds  of  earth  and  showers  of  stone.  Lieutenant  Nor- 
man, an  old  Regular  Army  man,  was  in  charge  of  the 
platoon,  and  after  seeing  that  his  guards  and  outposts 
were  in  position,  ordered  the  rest  of  the  men  into  the  dug- 
outs. While  he  was  in  the  smaller  one  a  torpedo  struck 
it  fair  and  destroyed  it,  burying  the  two  signal  men  from 
Headquarters  Company,  Arthur  Hegney  and  Edward 
Kearney.    The  Lieutenant  barely  managed  to  extricate  him- 


62  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

self  from  the  debris  and  set  himself  to  look  after  the  rest 
of  his  men.  He  was  inspecting  the  larger  dugout  alongside 
when  another  huge  shell  came  over,  buried  itself  in  the 
very  top  of  the  cave  and  exploded,  rending  the  earth  from 
the  supporting  beams  and  filling  the  whole  living  space  and 
entrance  with  rocks  and  clay,  burying  the  Lieutenant  and 
twenty-four  men. 

Major  Donovan  of  the  ist  Battalion  was  at  the  Battalion 
P.  C.  with  Major  Stacom  when  the  bombardment  began. 
As  there  were  six  positions  to  defend  and  the  shelling 
might  mean  an  attack  anywhere  along  the  whole  line,  the 
Battalion  Commander's  duty  was  to  remain  at  the  middle 
of  the  web  with  his  reserves  at  hand  to  control  the  whole 
situation.  So  Major  Donovan  requested  that  as  he  had  no 
general  responsibilities  for  the  situation  he  might  be  per- 
mitted to  go  down  to  Rocroi  and  see  what  he  could  do  there. 
Stacom  was  unwilling  to  have  anybody  else  run  a  risk 
that  he  was  not  permitted  to  share  himself,  but  he  gave  his 
consent. 

Major  Donovan  found  the  men  in  line  contending  with  a 
desperate  condition.  The  trenches  were  in  places  levelled 
by  the  bombardment  and  though  the  enemy  were  no  longer 
hurling  their  big  torpedoes  they  kept  up  a  violent  artillery 
attack  on  the  position.  The  only  answer  that  we  could 
make  to  this  was  from  the  trench  mortars  which  were 
kept  going  steadily  by  Lieutenants  Walsh  and  F.  Mc- 
Namara,  Corporal  Cudmore,  William  Murphy,  Wisner, 
Young,  Harvey,  P.  Garvey,  Herbert  Shannon,  F.  Garvey, 
DeNair,  Robertson  and  the  one  pounders  under  Lieutenant 
Cunningham,  Sergeants  J.  J.  Ryan  and  Willermin.  One 
of  their  guns  was  blown  clean  out  of  its  position. 

Corporal  Helmer  with  Privates  Raymond,  McKenzie, 
Cohen,  McCormack,  O'Meara  and  Smeltzer  were  saved 
from  the  dugout  and  immediately  began  tO'  work  for  the 
rescue  of  the  others,  aided  by  ist  Sergeant  Bailey,  Sergeants 
William  Kelly  and  Andrew  Callahan,  Corporals  Bernard 
Kelly  and  William  Halligan  with  John  Cronin,  Thomas 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  63 

Murray,  James  Joyce  and  John  Cowie.  They  knew  that 
many  of  their  comrades  were  dead  already  but  the  voices 
could  still  be  heard  as  the  yet  standing  timbers  kept  the 
earth  from  filling  the  whole  grade.  The  rescuers  were  aided 
by  Lieutenant  Buck  and  three  sergeants  of  Company  A, 
who  had  remained  until  the  newly  arrived  company  had 
learned  its  way  about  the  sector.  These  were  Sergeants 
William  Moore,  Daniel  O'Connell  and  Spencer  Rossel. 
Sergeant  Abram  Blaustein  also  hastened  up  with  the  pioneer 
section,  Mackay,Taggart,  Schwartz,  Adair,  Heins,  Ouinn, 
LaClair,  Dunn,  Gillman  and  the  rest. 

Major  Donovan  found  them  working  like  mad  in  an 
entirely  exposed  position  to  liberate  the  men  underneath. 
A  real  soldier's  first  thought  will  always  be  the  holding  of 
his  position,  so  the  Major  quickly  saw  to  it  that  the  defense 
was  properly  organized.  Little  Eddie  Kelly,  a  seventeen- 
year-old  boy,  was  one  of  the  coolest  men  in  sight,  and  he 
flushed  with  pleasure  when  told  that  he  was  to  have  a 
place  of  honor  and  danger  on  guard.  The  work  of  rescue 
was  kept  going  with  desperate  energy,  although  there  was 
but  little  hope  that  any  more  could  be  saved,  as  the  softened 
earth  kept  slipping  down,  and  it  was  impossible  to  make  a 
firm  passageway.  The  Engineers  were  also  sent  for  and 
worked  through  the  night  to  get  out  bodies  for  burial  but 
with  only  partial  success.  Meanwhile  the  defenders  of  the 
trench  had  to  stand  a  continuous  shelling  in  which  little 
Kelly  was  killed,  Stephen  Navin  and  Stephen  Derrig  were 
seriously  wounded,  and  Sergeant  Kahn,  Corporal  Smeltzer 
and  Privates  Bowler  and  Dougherty  slightly. 

The  French  military  authorities  conferred  a  number  of 
Croix  de  Guerre,  giving  a  Corps  citation  to  Corporal  Hel- 
mer  for  working  to  save  his  comrades  after  having  been 
buried  himself,  "giving  a  very  fine  example  of  conscience, 
devotion  and  courage."  Division  citations  went  to  Major 
Donovan,  "superior  officer  who  has  shown  brilliant  military 
qualities  notably  on  the  7th  and  8th  of  March,  1918,  by 
giving  during  the  course  of  a  violent  bombardment  an  exam- 


64  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

pie  of  bravery,  activity  and  remarkable  presence  of  mind"; 
and  to  Private  James  Quigley,  who  "carried  two  wounded 
men  to  first  aid  station  under  a  violent  bombardment  and 
worked  all  night  trying  to  remove  his  comrades  buried 
under  a  destroyed  dugout."  Regimental  citations  were 
given  to  Lieutenant  John  Norman,  Lieutenants  Oscar  Buck 
and  W.  Arthur  Cunningham,  Sergeant  William  Bailey  and 
Carl  Kahn  of  Company  E,  Sergeants  William  J.  Moore, 
Daniel  O'Connell  and  Spencer  T.  Rossell  of  Company  A, 
Sergeants  Blaustein  and  Private  Charles  Jones  of  H.  Q. 
Company. 

The  bodies  of  Eddie  Kelly  and  Oscar  Ammon  of  Com- 
pany F,  who  was  also  killed  during  that  night,  with  those 
that  could  be  gotten  from  the  dugout  were  buried  in  Croix- 
mare  in  a  plot  selected  for  the  purpose  near  a  roadside 
Calvary  which,  from  the  trees  surrounding  it,  was  called 
the  "Croix  de  L'Arbre  Vert"  or  "Green  Tree  Cross."  The 
others  we  left  where  they  fell.  Over  the  ruined  dugout 
we  erected  a  marble  tablet  with  the  inscription,  "Here  on 
the  field  of  honor  rest" — and  their  names. 

Company  E  held  those  broken  trenches  with  their  dead 
lying  there  all  of  that  week  and  Company  L  during  the 
week  following.  Following  is  a  full  list  of  the  dead : 
Lieutenant  John  Norman,  Corporal  Edward  Sullivan, 
George  Adkins,  Michael  Ahearn,  Patrick  Britt,  Arthur 
Christfully,  William  Drain,  William  Ellinger,  Philip  S. 
Finn,  Michael  Galvin,  John  J.  Haspel,  Edward  J.  Kelly, 
James  B.  Kennedy,  Peter  Lafifey,  John  J.  Le  Gall,  Charles 
T.  Luginsland,  Frank  Meagher,  William  A.  Moylan,  Wil- 
liam H.  Sage  and  Robert  Snyder  of  Company  E;  Arthur  V. 
Hegney  and  Edward  J.  Kearney  of  Headquarters  Company 
and  Oscar  Ammon  of  Company  F. 

ARBRE   HAUT 

March  12th,  1918 

We  have  given  up  hope  of  getting  our  dead  out  of  Roc- 

roi — it  would  be  a  task  for  the  Engineers,  and  it  would 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  65 

probably  mean  the  loss  of  many  more  lives  to  accomplish 
it.  Joyce  Kilmer's  fine  instincts  have  given  us  a  juster 
view  of  the  propriety  of  letting  them  rest  where  they  fell. 
So  I  went  out  today  to  read  the  services  of  the  dead  and 
bless  their  tomb.  Company  L  is  in  that  position  now,  and 
they  too  have  been  subjected  to  a  fierce  attack  in  which 
Lieutenant  Booth  was  wounded.  He  and  Lieutenant  Baker 
and  Corporal  Lawrence  Spencer  are  in  for  a  Croix  de 
Guerre  for  courage  in  action.  Today  there  was  a  lot  of 
sniping  going  on,  so  Sergeant  John  Donoghue  and  Ser- 
geant Bill  Sheahan  wanted  to  go  out  to  the  position  with 
me.  They  are  two  of  the  finest  lads  that  Ireland  has  given 
us,  full  of  faith  and  loyalty,  and  they  had  it  in  mind,  I 
know,  to  stand  each  side  of  me  and  shield  me  from  harm 
with  their  bodies.  Val  Roesel,  Bert  Landzert  and  Martin 
Coneys  also  insisted  that  they  would  make  good  acolytes  for 
me.  But  I  selected  the  littlest  one  in  the  crowd,  Johnny 
McSherry ;  and  little  Jack  trotted  along  the  trench  in  front 
of  me  with  his  head  erect  while  I  had  to  bend  my  long 
back  to  keep  my  head  out  of  harm's  way.  We  came  on 
Larry  Spencer  in  an  outpost  position  contemplating  his 
tin  hat  with  a  smile  of  satisfaction.  It  had  a  deep  dent 
in  it  where  a  bullet  had  hit  it  and  then  deflected — a  fine 
souvenir. 

We  finished  our  services  at  the  grave  and  returned.  I 
lingered  a  while  with  Spencer,  a  youth  of  remarkable 
elevation  of  character — it  is  a  good  thing  for  a  Chaplain 
to  have  somebody  to  look  up  to.  Back  in  the  woods  I 
met  two  new  Lieutenants,  Bernard  Shanley  and  Edward 
Sheffler.  Shanley  is  from  the  Old  Sod.  Sheffler  is  a  Chi- 
cagoan  of  Polish  decent,  a  most  likable  youth.  I  gave  them 
a  good  start  on  their  careers  as  warriors  by  hearing  their 
confessions. 

That  reminded  me  that  I  had  some  neglected  parishioners 
in  Company  I,  so  I  went  over  their  set  of  trenches.  Around 
the  P.  C.  it  looks  like  pictures  of  the  houses  of  wattles  and 
clay  that  represent  the  architecture  of  Early  Britain.     Met 


66  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Harry  Adikes  and  Ed  Battersby  and  found  them  easy  vic- 
tims when  I  talked  confession.  Where  do  the  Irish  get 
such  names  ?  Ask  Wilton  Wharton  what  his  ancestors  were 
and  he  will  say  "Irish" ;  so  will  Bob  Cousens  and  Bill  Cuffe, 
Eddie  Willett,  Jim  Peel  or  Jim  Vail.  Charlie  Cooper  is  half 
way  to  being  Irish  now,  and  he  will  be  all  Irish  if  he  gets 
a  girl  I  know.  I  know  how  Charlie  Garret  is  Irish, — for 
he  comes  from  my  neighborhood,  and  if  it  were  the  custom 
to  adopt  the  mother's  name  in  a  family  he  would  be  Charles 
Ryan.  The  same  custom  would  let  anybody  know  without 
his  telling  it,  as  he  does  with  his  chest  out,  that  George  Van 
Pelt  is  Irish  too.  I  saw  one  swarthy  fellow  with  MIKE 
KELLEY  in  black  letters  on  his  gas  mask,  but  on  asking  him 
I  found  that  he  was  Irish  only  by  abbreviation,  as  he  was 
christened  Michael  Keleshian.  Tommy  O'Brien  made  him- 
self my  guide  and  acolyte  for  my  holy  errand;  and  he  first 
took  me  on  a  tour  amongst  the  supply  sergeants  and  cooks 
for  he  wanted  us  both  well  looked  after.  So  when  we  had 
gotten  Eddie  Joyce,  Pat  Rogan,  Michael  O'Brien,  Tom 
Loftus  and  Joe  Callahan  in  proper  Christian  condition  for 
war  or  hospitality,  we  sallied  forth  around  the  trenches. 

Religion  in  the  trenches  has  no  aid  from  pealing  organ  or 
stained  glass  windows,  but  it  is  a  real  and  vital  thing  at 
that.  The  ancestors  of  most  of  us  kept  their  religious 
life  burning  brightly  as  they  stole  to  the  proscribed  Mass  in 
a  secluded  glen,  or  told  their  beads  by  a  turf  fire ;  and  I  find 
that  religion  thrives  today  in  a  trench  with  the  diapason  of 
bursting  shells  for  an  organ.  I  had  a  word  or  two  for  every 
man  and  they  were  glad  to  get  it ;  and  the  consolations  of  the 
old  faith  for  those  that  were  looking  for  it.  It  makes  a 
man  feel  better  about  the  world  and  God,  and  the  kind  of 
people  he  has  put  into  it  to  know  in  conditions  like  these 
such  men  as  Bill  Beyer,  Fordham  College  Man;  Pat  Car- 
roll, Chauffeur;  Tom  Brennan,  Patrick  Collins,  whom  I  am 
just  beginning  to  know  and  to  like;  Bill  Dynan,  whom  I 
have  known  and  liked  for  a  long  time;  manly  Pat  Hackett 
and  athletic  Pat  Flynn,  solid  non-coms  like  Ford,   Hen- 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  67 

nessey,  McDermott,  Murphy,  Denis  Hogan,  Michael  Jor- 
dan, Hugh  McFaddcn,  not  to  mention  the  old  Roman  1st 
Sergeant  Patrick  McMinaman.  It  was  the  vogue  at  one 
time  to  say  with  an  air  of  contempt  that  reHgion  is  a 
woman's  affair.  I  would  Hke  to  have  such  people  come  up 
here — if  they  dared:  and  say  the  same  thing  to  the  soldiers 
of  this  Company  or  of  this  Regiment — if  they  dared. 

The  last  outpost  was  an  interesting  one.  It  did  not  exist 
when  I  was  in  these  parts  with  the  2nd  Battalion,  as  our 
friends  on  the  other  side  had  not  yet  built  it  for  us.  But 
recently  they  have  sent  over  one  of  their  G.  I.  cans  (that, 
dear  reader,  means  galvanized  iron  can,  which  are  as  big  as 
a  barrel,  and  which  tells  the  story  of  what  a  minenwerfer 
torpedo  shell  looks  like  when  it  is  coming  toward  you)  and 
the  G.  I.  Can  made  a  hole  like  the  excavation  of  a  small 
cottage.  In  it  I  found  four  or  five  of  Company  I  snugly 
settled  down  and  very  content  at  being  that  much  closer 
to  the  enemy.  Here  I  met  for  the  first  time  Ed.  Shanahan,  a 
fine  big  fellow  who  ought  to  make  good  with  us,  and 
Charlie  Stone,  whose  mother  was  the  last  to  say  good-bye  to 
me  as  we  left  Camp  Mills.  Mess  came  up  while  we  were 
there  and  we  did  justice  to  it  sitting  on  clumps  of  soft  earth 
which  had  been  rolled  into  round  snowballs  by  the  ex- 
plosion— and  chatting  about  New  York. 


ST.  Patrick's  day  in  the  trenches 

Sunday,  March   17th   1918 

What  a  day  this  would  have  been  for  us  if  we  were  back 
in  New  York !  Up  the  Avenue  to  St.  Patrick's  Cathedral  in 
the  morning,  and  the  big  organ  booming  out  the  old  Irish 
airs  and  the  venerable  old  Cardinal  uttering  words  of  bless- 
ing and  encouragement.  And  in  the  afternoon  out  on 
parade  with  the  Irish  Societies  with  the  band  playing  Garry 
Owen  and  Let  Erin  Remember  and  O'Donnell  Aboo,  as  we 
pass  through  the  cheering  crowds.     And  how  they  would 


68  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

shout  in  this  year  of  Grace  1918  if  we  could  be  suddenly 
transported  to  New  York's  Avenue  of  triumph.  But  I  am 
glad  we  are  not  there.  For  more  than  seventy  years  the 
old  Regiment  has  marched  up  the  Avenue  in  Church  parade 
on  St.  Patrick's  Day.  But  never,  thank  God,  when  the 
country  was  at  war.  Other  New  Yorkers  may  see  the 
Spring  sweeping  through  the  Carolinas  or  stealing  timidly 
up  the  cliffs  of  the  Hudson  or  along  the  dented  shores  of 
Long  Island ;  but  there  is  only  one  place  in  the  world  where 
the  old  Irish  Regiment  has  any  right  to  celebrate  it,  and 
that  is  on  the  battle  line. 

The  3rd  Battalion  is  in  the  trenches,  so  I  went  up  yes- 
terday and  spent  the  night  with  Major  Moynahan,  who 
gave  me  a  true  Irish  welcome.  He  and  Leslie  have  made 
good  Irishmen  out  of  Lieutenants  Rerat  and  Jackson  and 
we  had  a  pleasant  party. 

We  had  not  a  Cathedral  for  our  St.  Patrick's  day  Mass 
but  Lieutenant  Austin  Lawrence  had  Jim  McCormack  and 
George  Daly  of  the  Medicos  pick  out  a  spot  for  me  among 
the  trees  to  conceal  my  bright  vestments  from  observation 
and  the  men  who  were  free  slipped  up  the  boyaus  from  the 
nearby  trenches  for  the  services. 

Later  in  the  morning  I  said  Mass  back  at  Camp  New 
York  for  the  2nd  Battalion  in  a  grove  of  young  birch 
trees  on  the  hill  slope,  the  men  being  scattered  singly  over 
the  slope  and  holding  very  still  when  the  bugler  sounded 
the  alert  for  an  enemy  aeroplane  over  head.  I  described 
former  St.  Patrick  days  to  them  and  told  them  they  were 
better  here.  New  York  would  talk  more  of  them,  think 
more  of  them  than  if  they  were  back  there.  Every  man  in 
the  town  would  be  saying  he  wished  he  were  here  and 
every  man  worth  his  salt  would  mean  it.  The  leading  men 
of  our  country  had  called  us  to  fight  for  human  liberty  and 
the  rights  of  small  nations,  and  if  we  rallied  to  that  noble 
cause  we  would  establish  a  claim  on  our  own  country  and 
on  humanity  in  favor  of  the  dear  land  from  which  so 
many  of  us  had  sprung,  and  which  all  of  us  loved. 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  69 

In  the  afternoon  we  had  a  fine  concert  under  the  trees. 
Sergeants  Frye  and  Tom  Donahoe  played  for  Tommy  Mc- 
Cardle's  funny  songs,  and  for  John  Mullin's  serious  ones. 
McManus  and  Ouinn  played  the  fife  for  Irish  dances,  and 
Lieutenant  Prout,  by  special  request,  recited  John  Locke's 
poem,  "Oh  Ireland,  I  Bid  You  the  Top  of  the  Morn- 
mg. 

In  the  middle  of  the  concert  I  read  Joyce  Kilmer's  noble 
poem,  "Rouge  Bouquet."  The  last  lines  of  each  verse  are 
written  to  respond  to  the  notes  of  "Taps,"  the  bugle  call 
for  the  end  of  the  day  which  is  also  blown  ere  the  last  sods 
are  dropped  on  the  graves  of  the  dead.  Sergeant  Patrick 
Stokes  stood  near  me  with  his  horn  and  blew  the  tender 
plaintive  notes  before  I  read  the  words ;  and  then  from  the 
deep  woods  where  Egan  was  stationed  came  a  repetition 
of  the  notes  "Hke  horns  from  elfland  faintly  blowing." 
Before  I  had  finished  tears  had  started  in  many  an  eye  espe- 
cially amongst  the  lads  of  Company  E.  I  had  known  it  was 
going  to  be  a  sad  moment  for  all,  and  had  directed  the  band 
to  follow  me  up  with  a  medley  of  rollicking  Irish  airs ;  just 
as  in  military  funerals  the  band  leads  the  march  to  the 
grave  in  solemn  cadence  and  departs  playing  a  lively  tune. 
It  is  the  only  spirit  for  warriors  with  battles  yet  to  fight. 
We  can  pay  tribute  to  our  dead  but  we  must  not  lament  for 
them  overmuch. 

CROIXMARE 

March  i8th,  1918 
I  buried  a  soldier  of  the  117th  Signal  Battalion  in  Croix- 
mare  today  with  unusual  honors.  Private  Wilkerson  had 
been  killed  in  action  and  as  he  was  a  Catholic  Major  Gar- 
rett had  asked  me  to  perform  the  ceremony.  The  French 
were  most  kind  in  participating,  but  that  is  no  new  thing. 
Colonel  Dussauge  always  has  his  Chasseurs  take  part  with 
us  in  funerals,  though  it  is  a  distraction  to  me  to  see  them 
trying  to  accommodate  their  short  choppy  gait  ("like  sol- 
diers in  the  Movies"  according  to  Bandsman  McGregor) 


70  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

to  the  air  of  a  Dead  March.  I  said  to  the  Colonel :  'There 
is  one  thing  your  men  can't  do."  "What  is  that?"  "Walk 
to  a  funeral  march."  "Thank  you  for  the  compliment, 
Monsieur  I'Aumonier."  The  Cure,  too,  always  came 
to  our  funerals.  And  we  had  a  fine  grizzled  old  Oblate 
Division  Chaplain  who  has  been  in  all  the  French  wars  from 
Madagascar  to  Tonquin.  The  Government  tried  to  put  him 
out  of  France  when  the  law  against  Religious  was  passed, 
but  he  refused  to  go,  saying  he  would  live  his  life  in 
France  if  he  had  to  live  it  in  jail.  I  met  a  number  of 
these  religious  in  the  army,  most  of  them  returned  from  ex- 
ile to  offer  their  lives  in  defense  of  their  country.  If  the 
French  Government  puts  them  out  after  the  war  is  over 
they  will  deserve  the  scorn  and  enmity  of  mankind  as  a 
rotten  set  of  ingrates. 

At  the  grave  we  found  we  had  other  spectators.  I  saw 
General  Menoher  and  General  Lenihan  v^^ith  a  short  spare- 
built  civilian  whom  I  took  for  a  reporter.  He  had  a  French 
gas  mask  with  a  long  tape,  which  hung  down  between  his 
legs  like  a  Highlander's  sporran.  There  were  Moving  Pic- 
ture cameras  too,  which  seemed  to  spell  a  Presence.  I 
whispered  to  the  old  Cure  that  his  picture  would  be  put  on 
the  screen  in  every  town  in  America,  at  which  he  was,  I 
could  see,  somewhat  shocked  and  altogether  pleased.  After 
the  ceremony  a  number  of  the  Signal  Battalion  took  advan- 
tage of  the  opportunity  to  go  to  confession;  and  I  was  stand- 
ing by  the  side  of  a  truck  performing  my  pious  duties  when 
General  Lenihan  approached  with  the  slim  reporter.  They 
did  not  intrude,  so  I  missed  my  chance  of  making  the 
acquaintance  of  the  energetic  Newton  W.  Baker,  Secretary 
of  War  of  the  United  States. 


LU  NEVILLE 

March  21st,  1918 

For  the  past  twelve  days  volunteers  from  the  ist  Battalion 
have  been  preparing,  under  command  of  Lieutenants  Henry 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  71 

A.  Bootz  and  Raymond  H.  Newton,  for  a  coup  de  main 
in  connection  with  the  41st  Battalion  of  Chasseurs.  They 
have  been  training  with  the  French  at  Croixmare  and  I  find 
it  interesting  to  watch  them.  They  go  through  all  sorts 
of  athletic  stunts  to  get  into  perfect  condition,  study  the 
ground  through  maps  on  the  blackboard  showing  just  what 
each  man's  position  is  to  be,  and  then  w^ork  out  the  whole 
thing  over  a  ground  which  is  very  much  like  the  Ouvrage 
Blanc,  where  the  raid  will  take  place. 

Last  Saturday  afternoon,  after  I  had  been  hearing  con- 
fessions amongst  them,  four  or  five  of  the  Irish  lads  waited 
to  see  me.  I  went  for  a  walk  with  them  around  an  old 
moat  and  as  we  stood  looking  at  a  stone  tablet  that  com- 
memorated the  victory  of  some  Duke  of  Lorraine  over  a 
Duke  of  Burgundy  four  hundred  years  ago,  Billy  Elwood 
put  the  question,  "Father,  do  you  think  we'll  be  afraid?" 
"Not  you,"  I  said,  "not  a  bit  of  it.  You  may  feel  rather 
tight  across  the  chest  for  the  five  minutes  before  you  tear 
into  it,  but  when  you  get  going  you'll  forget  even  that,  be- 
cause your  blood  will  be  up."  "I  believe  you,"  he  said. 
"Of  course  you  know  none  of  us  are  afraid  and  we  are  all 
anxious  to  have  a  try  at  it,  but  it's  our  first  time  in  a  thing 
of  this  sort  and  the  only  worry  we  have  is  that  something 
might  go  wrong  inside  of  us  and  spoil  the  good  namxC  of  the 
Irish." 

Before  the  raid  started  there  was  an  amusing  little  inter- 
lude. Corporal  Bob  Foster  of  Company  D  had  a  little  Irish 
flag  given  to  him  by  Sergeant  Evers  of  the  Band,  and  the 
lads  were  determined  that  that  flag  would  go  over  the  top  in 
the  first  organized  attack  made  by  the  regiment.  A  young 
officer,  not  of  our  Division,  who  had  been  sent  as  an  ob- 
server, saw  the  flag  stuck  at  the  top  of  Foster's  rifle  and  felt 
it  his  duty  to  protest  against  it.  After  a  short  parley  Bootz 
demanded,  "What  are  you  here  for,  anyway."  "I'm  an 
observer,"  was  the  response.  "Then  climb  a  tree  and  ob- 
serve, and  let  me  run  this  raid." 

Our  artillery  was  busy  bombarding  the  position  that  was 


72  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

to  be  the  object  of  assault  and  at  7:35  P.  M.  the  men 
went  out  through  our  wires  under  cover  of  darkness  and 
took  up  their  position  near  the  chicanes  (passages)  in  the 
enemy  wire,  which  had  been  reconnoitered  the  night  be- 
fore. Our  artillery  laid  down  a  barrage  at  7 150  for  a  space 
of  three  minutes  upon  which  the  front  line  advanced  and 
got  possession  of  the  German  trenches  without  opposition, 
as  the  Germans  had  evacuated  them  during  the  heavy  bom- 
bardment of  the  past  two  days.  They  were  just  in  time  in 
reaching  shelter  for  the  German  artillery  began  to  shell 
their  own  abandoned  line  most  vigorously.  The  trouble 
about  this  attack  was  that  our  own  artillery  preparation  had 
been  too  good.  The  Germans  could  not  help  inferring 
that  this  point  was  to  be  made  the  object  of  an  assault,  so 
they  drew  back  and  waited  until  the  infantry  had  reached 
tlie  position.  Then  they  turned  on  them  the  full  force  of 
artillery  and  machine  gun  fire  from  positions  further  back, 
leaving  to  the  assaulters  the  choice  between  getting  back  to 
their  own  lines,  or  attacking  an  unknown  and  well  defended 
position  in  the  dark.  The  French  Officer  in  charge  gave 
the  order  to  retire.  During  this  period  Edward  Maher  of 
Company  B  must  have  been  killed  because  no  word  of  him 
was  ever  received.  Corporal  William  Elwood  and  Joseph 
Miller  of  Company  C  were  fatally  wounded.  Badly 
wounded  were  Sergeants  John  F.  Scully,  Fred  Almendinger 
and  Martin  Gill  of  Company  A  and  Patrick  Grogan  of 
Company  D.  After  getting  back  to  the  French  trenches 
Bootz  and  Newton  repeatedly  led  parties  back  over  the  shell- 
swept  area  to  search  for  IMaher,  and  to  see  if  the  Germans 
had  reoccupied  their  trenches.  On  this  mission  Thomas  P. 
Minogue  of  Company  B  was  killed.  Lieutenant  Newton 
carried  in  one  French  soldier  and  Private  Plant  carried  iri 
another.  Lieutenant  Bootz,  with  Corporal  Joseph  Pettit 
of  Company  C,  helped  Sergeant  Scully  to  the  lines,  and 
going  out  again,  they  found  Joe  IMiller,  his  right  leg  ampu- 
tated by  a  shell.     Miller  was  a  big  man  but  Bootz  swung 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  73 

him  up  on  his  back  and  with  Pettit  assisting,  carried  him 
baclv  into  the  Hnes. 

The  following  officers  and  men  taking  part  in  this  coup 
de  main  were  decorated  by  the  French  authorities  on  March 
22nd  at  Croixmare:  Division  Citations,  First  Lieutenant 
Henry  A.  Bootz,  Second  Lieutenant  Raymond  H.  Newton, 
Private  Marlow  Plant ;  Regimental  Citations :  Company  A, 
Joseph  C.  Pettit,  Frank  J.  Fisher,  Privates  George  Mc- 
Carthy, Bernard  McOwen,  Michael  Morley,  Sergeant  John 
Scully;  Company  B,  Sergeants  Spiros  Thomas,  Christian 
Biomdall,  Corporal  William  F.  Judge,  Privates  Frank 
Brandreth,  Vincent  J.  Eckas,  Daniel  J.  Finnegan ;  Company 
C,  Sergeant  Eugene  A.  McNiff,  Corporal  Hennan  E.  Hillig, 
Privates  Bernard  Barry,  Michael  Cooney,  James  Barry, 
John  J.  Brawley,  Joseph  A.  Miller;  Company  D,  Sergeant 
Thomas  M.  O'Malley,  Corporal  Thomas  H.  Brown,  Pji- 
vates  Denis  O'Connor,  Patrick  Grogan,  John  Cahill,  Harry 
H.  DeVoe. 

Of  the  wounded.  El  wood  diea  shortly  after  being  brought 
to  the  Hospital  at  Luneville  and  Joe  Miller  succumbed  the 
next  day  after  sufferings  borne  with  a  fortitude  that  begot 
the  admiration  of  nurses  and  doctors  used  to  dealing  with 
courageous  men.  The  others  are  wounded  badly  enough 
but  they  will  recover.  Almendinger,  who  describes  him- 
self as  "half  Boche  and  half  County  Kilkenny,"  was  going 
off  to  the  operating  ward  to  have  his  wounded  eye  re- 
moved when  I  saw  him  the  second  time.  "Never  mind 
about  that,  Fred,"  I  said,  "Uncle  Sam  will  look  after  you." 
"Fm  not  thinking  about  Uncle  Sam  at  all.  There's  a  girl 
back  in  New  York  who  doesn't  care  whether  I  have  one 
eye  or  two.  so  I  should  worry." 

THE  GAS  ATTACK 

March  20th  and  21st,  19 18 
But  meanwhile  there  had  been  other  happenings  in  the 
sector  which  quite  overshadowed  the  ist  Battalion  raid. 


74  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Company  K  went  into  the  line  in  the  Rouge  Bouquet 
Sector  on  March  12th,  19 18,  relieving  Company  H.  The 
Company  Headquarters  were  at  Chaussailles,  and  the  two 
platoons  in  the  front  line  were :  on  the  right,  at  Changar- 
nier  (C,  R.  i),  one  platoon;  in  the  center  at  C.  R,  2  a 
half  platoon;  and  on  the  left  at  Chevert  (C.  R.  3)  a  half 
platoon. 

There  were  no  casualties  for  the  first  eight  days  except 
that  John  Ring  received  a  bullet  in  the  arm.  Our  patrols 
did  not  come  into  contact  with  the  Boches  ( who  apparently 
never  left  their  lines)  and  except  a  few  minenwerfer  and 
some  shelling  with  77's  the  sector  was  quiet,  the  weather 
was  fine,  and  every  one  spoke  of  the  tour  at  the  front  as  a 
picnic. 

About  5  130  on  the  evening  of  the  20th  the  Boches  sud- 
denly began  to  bombard  the  entire- company  sector,  from  a 
line  not  far  from  their  own  trenches  to  a  line  several  hun- 
dred yards  in  the  rear  of  Company  Headquarters,  with 
mustard  gas  shells  and  shrapnel,  the  heaviest  bombardment 
being  in  the  vicinity  of  C.  R.  2,  where  Sergeant  Frank 
Doughney  was  in  command,  of  C.  R.  3,  w-here  Lieutenant 
Bill  Crane  was  in  command,  and  at  the  first  aid  station, 
where  Lieutenant  Patten  and  his  group  were  quartered, 
together  with  the  fourth  platoon  under  Lieutenant  Levi. 
This  bombardment  lasted  about  three  hours. 

The  groups  stationed  at  the  outposts  were  caught  on 
their  way  in,  the  two  groups  under  Corporals  Caulfield  and 
Joe  Farrell  being  led  by  Corporal  Farrell  into  an  incom- 
plete dugout  about  300  yards  in  front  of  our  lines,  the  other 
two  going  directly  in. 

The  second  platoon,  under  Lieutenant  Dowling  in  Chan- 
gamier,  were  not  so  heavily  shelled  and^  being  on  higher 
ground,  were  not  gassed  so  badly  as  the  others. 

In  C.  R,  2,  Harry  McCoun  was  struck  by  a  shell  which 
carried  away  his  left  hand.  He  held  up  the  stump  and 
shouted,  "Well,  boys,  there  goes  my  left  wing,"  Sergeant 
Jack  Ross  and  Private  Ted  Van  Yorx  led  him  under  heavy 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  75 

fire  back  to  the  first  aid  station,  where  Doctor  Patten 
tore  off  his  mask/to  operate  on  him  (for  which  he  earned 
the  Croix  de  Guerre),  but  McCoun  died  the  next  morn- 
ing. 

In  C.  R.  3,  Lieutenant  Crane  walked  from  one  post  to 
the  other  in  the  midst  of  the  heaviest  bombardment  in  order 
to  encourage  the  men.  In  the  midst  of  this  bombardment, 
several  of  the  runners,  including  particularly  Privates  Ed 
Rooney  and  Ray  Staber,  distinguished  themselves  by  their 
courage  and  coolness  in  carrying  messages  between  Com- 
pany headquarters  and  the  front  line. 

The  men  were  prompt  in  putting  on  their  masks  as  soon 
as  the  presence  of  gas  was  recognized,  but  it  was  found 
impossible  to  keep  them  on  indefinitely  and  at  the  same 
time  keep  up  the  defense  of  the  sector.  Immediately  after 
the  bombardment,  the  entire  company  area  reeked  with  the 
odor  of  mustard  gas  and  this  condition  lasted  for  sev- 
eral days.  It  had  been  raining  heavily  the  night  before,  and 
there  was  no  breeze  whatever. 

By  about  midnight  some  of  the  men  were  sick  as  a  result 
of  the  gas,  and  as  the  night  wore  on,  one  after  another  they 
began  to  feel  its  effects  on  their  eyes,  to  cry,  and  gradually 
to  go  blind,  so  that  by  dawn  a  considerable  number  from 
the  front  line  had  been  led  all  the  way  back  and  were  sitting 
by  the  Luneville  road,  completely  blinded,  and  waiting  their 
turn  at  an  ambulance,  and  the  third  platoon  were  unable 
to  furnish  enough  men  to  man  all  their  posts  and  were 
compelled  to  ask  for  replacements. 

Meanwhile,  about  ten  o'clock  at  night,  the  first  and 
fourth  platoons  had  been  ordered  to  leave  their  reserve 
positions  and  march  back  to  the  Luneville  road  and  down 
the  cross-road  on  the  other  side  where  they  lay  down  in  the 
mud  and  slept  till  morning.  In  the  morning  they  filtered 
down  to  replace  the  casualties  in  the  other  two  platoons. 

About  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  Lieutenant  (Doctor) 
Martin  came  down  in  the  midst  of  the  gas  to  relieve  Lieu- 
tenant Patten,  who  had  been  blinded  and  taken  to  the  hos- 


76  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

pital.  Lieutenant  Martin  was  himself  affected  by  the  gas 
and  went  blind  on  the  following  morning. 

By  dawn,  the  men  were  going  blind  one  after  another, 
and  being  ordered  to  the  hospital.  Often,  by  the  time 
they  got  to  the  ambulance,  the  man  leading  was  himself 
blind  and  both  got  into  the  ambulance  together.  Not  a 
man  lost  his  head  or  lay  down  on  the  job  and  not  a  man 
left  for  the  hospital  until  he  was  stone  blind,  or  ordered  to 
go  by  an  officer,  and  a  number  of  men  were  blinded  while 
on  post,  while  others  stuck  it  out  for  so  long  that  it  was 
finally  necessary  to  carry  them  on  stretchers  to  the  dressing 
station;  and  this  although  all  had  been  instructed  that 
mustard  gas  was  one  of  the  most  deadly  gases  and  that 
it  caused  blindness  which  lasted  for  months  and  was  in 
many  cases  permanent. 

By  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  fully  two-tliirds  of  the 
company  had  been  blinded,  and  about  this  time  Lieutenants 
Crane,  Dowling  and  Levi,  and  Captain  Hurley  one  after 
the  other  went  blind  and  were  led  back,  followed  later  by 
Lieutenant  Burns. 

Throughout  the  day  the  men  continued  to  go  blind,  until 
by  seven  o'clock  only  about  thirty  were  left,  almost  all  of 
whom  were  in  the  front  line,  under  command  of  Lieutenant 
Tom  Alartin,  and  they  were  so  few  that  it  was  necessary 
for  them  to  go  on  post  for  four  hours  at  a  stretch,  with 
two  hours  off,  and  some  of  them,  including  Tom  Hickey, 
Barney  Furey,  John  McLoughlin,  Pat  McConnell  and  Jerry 
O'Connor  were  on  post  for  as  long  as  six  hours  at  a 
time. 

At  seven  o'clock  Lieutenant  Hunt  Warner,  with  Lieu- 
tenant Zipp,  appeared  with  reinforcements,  consisting  of 
forty  men  from  Company  ]M.  Lieutenant  Warner  was  put 
in  command  at  Chevert  with  Sergeant  Embrie  of  Company 
K,  as  second  in  command;  Sergeant  Von  Glahn  of  Com- 
pany M,  was  put  in  command  at  C.  R.  2,  where  the  gas 
was  at  that  time  especially  heavy ;  and  Lieutenant  Zipp  was 
put  in  command  at  Changarnier,  with  Corporal  Joe  Far- 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  77 

rell,  who  knew  the  sector  thoroughly  and  spent  the  night 
going  from  one  post  to  another,  as  second  in  command, 
Lieutenant  Tom  Martin  at  Changarnier  being  in  command 
of  the  whole  company  sector. 

That  evening  about  dusk  the  men  in  the  front  line  heard 
an  explosion  in  the  rear  and  looked  back  in  time  to  see 
the  battalion  ammunition  dump  go  up  in  a  blaze  of  glory,  on 
seeing  which  all  broke  into  applause  and  loud  cheers.  It 
was  thought  that  the  Boches  might  be  so  foolish  as  to 
think  the  evening  propitious  for  a  raid,  and  all  posts  were 
manned  and  all  were  ready  to  give  him  a  warm  reception, 
but  he  failed  to  show  up. 

At  seven  next  morning  the  French  appeared  and  the 
relief  was  completed  by  about  nine  o'clock,  when  the  sur- 
vivors set  out  for  Luneville,  where  they  were  taken  in  hand 
by  Lieutenant  Arnold,  who  ordered  them  all,  much  against 
their  protest,  to  a  hospital  where  they  were  surprised  to 
find  that  they  were  casualties,  their  injuries  consisting  prin- 
cipally of  burns  on  the  body,  which  had  just  begun  to  show 
up,  and  which  kept  most  of  them  in  the  hospital  for  at  least 
a  month. 

On  their  arrival  at  the  hospital  they  found  there  some 
of  the  French  troops  who  had  relieved  them  on  that  morn- 
ing and  who  had  already  become  casualties  because  of  the 
gas  which  lingered  in  the  area. 

The  men  killed,  besides  McCoun,  were  Salvatore  IMore- 
sca,  whose  body  was  found  by  the  French  in  No  Man's 
Land  the  day  after  the  Company  was  relieved,  Carl  Braun, 
of  Headquarters  Company,  hit  by  bullet,  wnth  Robert  Allen, 
Walter  Bigger,  and  Lawrence  Gavin,  who  died  in  the  hos- 
pital within  a  day  or  two  as  a  result  of  the  effect  of  the  gas 
on  their  lungs.  About  four  hundred  of  our  men  were  put 
out  of  action  in  this  gas  attack  including  practically  all  of 
K  Company,  many  of  M,  and  some  from  Headquarters, 
Supply  and  Medical. 

The  event  had  one  consoling  feature,  and  that  was  the 
superb  conduct  of  the  men.    They  had  been  told  most  awful 


78  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

stories  of  the  effect  of  gas.  When  they  found  that  their 
whole  position  was  saturated  with  it,  they  felt  that  their 
chances  to  live  through  it  were  slender,  and  that  they  would 
surely  be  blind  for  a  long  time.  And  yet  not  a  single  man 
quit  his  post  until  ordered.  There  was  no  disorder  or  panic ; 
the  men  of  Company  K  were  forced  to  quit  their  position, 
but  they  quit  it  one  by  one,  and  every  man  was  a  subject 
for  a  hospital  long  before  he  left.  And  the  Company  M 
men  coming  up  to  take  over  the  position,  and  seeing  the 
blinded  and  tortured  soldiers  going  back,  had  courage  in 
equal  measure.  Soldiers  that  will  stand  up  to  it  as  these 
had  done  under  the  terrors  and  sufferings  of  that  night 
can  be  relied  on  for  anytliing  that  men  can  be  called  on  to 
do. 

LUNEVILLE 

March  23rd,  1918 
We  are  quitting  this  sector  and  going  back  to  the  Langres 
area  to  rest  up  a  bit  and  study  out  the  lessons  we  have 
learned.  Most  of  the  companies  have  started  already.  The 
Gennans  are  shelling  this  city  today  for  the  first  time  in 
over  three  years.  It  is  an  interesting  experience  to  be  in  a 
shelled  city,  and,  so  far  as  I  can  see  the  results,  not  a  par- 
ticularly dangerous  one. 


ST.  BOINGT 

Palm  Sunday,  19 18 
This  has  been  an  ideal  Spring  day.  I  said  Mass  in  the 
village  church  for  the  "4th  Battalion"  (Headquarters,  Ala- 
chine  Gun,  Sanitary  and  Supply  Companies).  Later  in  the 
morning  Major  Lawrence  and  I  dropped  in  to  the  High 
Mass.  I  v/as  interested  in  the  palms.  When  I  was  a  lad  we 
used  cedar,  before  the  days  when  ships  from  the  Spanish 
Main  brought  their  cargoes  of  broad  palmetto  leaves,  which 
we  carry  in  our  hands  on  Palm  Sunday  and  wear  in  our 
hats  through  Holy  Week.     Here  they  use  anything  fresh. 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  79 

young  and  growing,  that  the  country  and  the  season  afford. 
The  people  pluck  small  branches  from  the  trees  on  their 
way  to  ]\Iass,  the  preference  being  for  willow  shoots  with 
their  shiny  yellow  green  bark  and  furry  buds.  There  is  a 
fine  old-world  countryside  flavor  to  this  custom  of  plucking 
these  offerings  to  the  Lord  from  one's  own  trees  or  along 
familiar  lanes,  that  we  never  get  from  our  boughten  palms. 

Thi^  I  felt  especially  when  I  saw  what  they  were  doing 
with  them.  When  the  procession  began,  everybody  arose 
and  followed  the  crossbearer  out  of  the  church  portals  into 
the  mellow  spring  morning.  Around  the  church  they  went, 
their  ranks  now  swelled  by  a  crowd  of  our  own  soldiers. 
Our  route  lay  through  the  graves  of  the  village  dead.  At 
each  grave  a  lone  figure  or  a  small  group  would  detach  them- 
selves and  kneel  in  prayer  while  they  stuck  their  fresh  young 
twigs  in  the  soil  around  it.  We  too  found  a  place  for  our 
offerings  and  prayers  when  we  came  to  a  recently  made 
mound  with  a  Croix  de  Guerre  and  bronze  palm  embossed 
upon  its  stone — a  French  soldier,  "Mort  pour  la  Patrie." 
We  borrowed  pussy  willows  from  the  people  and  pulled 
branches  of  green  box,  and  covered  that  grave  with  them 
while  we  made  our  soldier's  orisons  for  the  man  that  was 
sleeping  there,  and  for  our  own  fine  lads  that  we  had  left 
behind  in  the  dugout  at  Rocroi  and  under  the  Green  Tree 
Cross  at  Croixmare. 

After  Mass  I  started  off  across  the  fields  to  visit  the  2nd 
Battalion  at  Essey  la  Cote.  A  wonderful  spring  day — 
fresh  and  sweet  and  clear.  From  the  hill  one  could  see 
the  dull  red  tiles  of  twenty  villages  clustering  along  the 
slopes  of  the  rolling  landscape.  Faint  sounds  of  distant 
church  bells  came  to  my  ears;  and  nearer,  clearer  notes 
from  overhead  such  as  I  had  never  heard  before.  Sky- 
larks! It  was  the  final  touch  to  make  it  a  perfect  morn- 
ing. 

I  dropped  down  to  the  road  which  led  to  the  nestling 
village,  and  met  a  band  of  children  romping  out.  Here  too 
was  spring.     They  gathered  round  me,  not  at  all  shy,  for 


80  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

they  were  bubbling  with  excitement  and  anxious  to  talk. 
The  American  soldiers — they  were  so  big — and  so  young — 
and  so  nice — and  so  devout  (they  filled  the  church  at  three 
Masses) — and  so  rich  (they  gave  money  like  nobody  had 
ever  seen  before,  and  the  Commandant  had  put  a  twenty 
franc  note  on  the  collection  plate).  "Good  Old  Bill  Sta- 
com,"  I  mused,  "we  are  both  far  away  from  our  little 
parish  in  the  Bronx,  but  he  has  not  forgotten  my  teachings 
on  the  first  duty  of  the  laity." 

I  dined  with  Captain  Jim  Finn  and  his  happy  family  of 
bright  young  Lieutenants — Sherman  Piatt  and  Becker  and 
Otto  and  Flynn,  clean  cut  active  youngsters  who  enjoy  their 
work  and  are  delighted  at  serving  with  the  old  Regiment. 
I  spent  the  afternoon  amongst  the  men.  They  too  were 
enjoying  the  day  lazily,  cleaning  up  equipment  in  chatty 
groups  or  propped  against  sunny  walls,  or  wandering 
through  the  fields.  They  have  heard  of  the  big  German 
Drive  in  the  north  and  they  know  that  we  have  been  halted 
and  are  to  be  sent  in  somewhere.  They  are  somewhat  dis- 
appointed at  not  getting  back  to  Longeau  and  Baissey  and 
Cohons  and  Percey  once  more,  but  if  there  is  anything  big 
happening  they  don't  want  to  miss  it.  That's  what  we  are 
here  for. 

Billy  Kaas  ofifered  to  be  my  guide  to  the  hilltop,  from 
which  the  whole  countryside  can  be  seen  for  miles  around. 
The  spot  is  interesting  for  other  reasons.  It  marks  the 
high  water  level  of  the  German  invasion  of  Lorraine  in 
1914,  and  now  it  marks  the  furthest  backward  step  we  are 
to  make  on  this  journey.  I  feel  prophetic  twitchings  that 
it  will  be  a  long  long  time  before  we  are  allowed  to  pitch 
our  tents  in  that  part  of  France  over  there  which  has  not 
known  invasion  by  the  enemy.  The  news  from  the  North 
is  grave,  and  our  side  will  need  every  soldier  it  has  if  the 
Gennans  are  to  be  held  off.  And  that  is  a  job  that  will  take 
a  lot  of  doing.  Well,  as  the  men  say,  "that's  what  we  are 
here  for." 


THE  LUNEVILLE  SECTOR  81 

ST.  REMY  AUX  BOIS 

^  March  27th,  1918 

Dropped  over  in  the  morninr;^  to  call  on  the  First  Bat- 
talion. I  found  them  in  the  field,  where  Donovan  had  had 
them  lined  up  for  a  cross  country  run.  I  prudently  kept 
out  of  his  way  until  he  was  off  with  his  wild  youngsters, 
and  then  I  looked  up  George  IMcAdie,  who  had  a  stay-at- 
home  duty.  Reilley  and  Kennelly  and  McKenna  were  ca- 
vorting cross  country  with  the  rest.  Good  enough  for  them 
— athletics  is  a  big  part  of  their  lives.  But  George  and  I 
are  philosophers.  So  while  Donovan  led  his  gang  across 
brooks  and  barbwire  fences  and  over  hills  and  through 
woods,  George  and  I  sat  discussing  the  most  interesting 
beings  in  the  world;  soldier  men — their  loyalty,  courage, 
humor,  their  fits  of  laziness  and  sulkiness.  He  pointed 
out  to  me  a  dark  Celt  who  had  been  discontented  with  the 
mean  drudgery  of  a  soldier's  life  and  w'as  hard  to  manage. 
Different  methods  had  been  tried  to  jack  him  up.  All 
failed  until  the  Captain  gave  him  a  chance  to  go  over  in 
the  Luneville  raid.  At  last  he  found  something  the  lad 
was  eager  about.  He  went  through  the  training  with  cheer- 
fulness, distinguished  himself  under  fire  for  his  cool  alacrity, 
and  is  now  playing  the  game  like  a  veteran. 

Finally  the  harriers  got  back,  the  Major  the  freshest  man 
amongst  them.  ''Oh,  Father,"  he  said,  "why  didn't  you  get 
here  earlier?  You  missed  a  fine  time."  "j\Iy  Guardian 
Angel  was  taking  good  care  of  me,  William,"  I  said,  "and 
saw  to  it  that  I  got  here  late." 

In  the  afternoon  the  band  came  over  and  we  had  a  band 
concert  in  the  church  square  and  afterwards  a  vaudeville 
show  given  by  the  men.  The  Major  was  asked  to  say 
something  and  he  smilingly  passed  the  buck  to  me.  I  got 
square  by  telling  the  story  of  a  Major  who  had  been  shot 
at  by  a  German  sniper  while  visiting  one  of  his  compa- 
nies in  the  trenches.  He  made  a  big  fuss  about  it  with  the 
Captain,  who  in  turn  bawled  out  an  old  sergeant  for  allow- 


82  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ing  such  things  to  happen.  The  sergeant  went  himself  to 
settle  the  Heinie  that  was  raising  all  the  trouble.  Finally 
he  got  sight  of  his  man,  took  careful  aim  and  fired.  As 
he  saw  his  shot  reach  home,  he  muttered,  "Take  that,  con- 
found you,  for  missing  the  Major." 


BACCARAT 

Easter  Sunday  Night 
Yesterday  we  were  at  Xaffevillers,  Magnieres  and  St. 
Pierremont.  For  my  Easter  celebration  I  picked  Magnieres, 
as  the  whole  2nd  Battalion  was  there  and  two  companies  of 
the  1st  in  St.  Pierremont,  only  ten  minutes  away.  For  con- 
fessions I  set  up  shop  in  the  street  at  the  crossways,  and  I 
had  a  busy  day  of  it.  There  was  always  a  long  file  wait- 
ing, but  when  nobody  has  much  to  tell  the  task  is  soon  sped. 
I  stayed  with  Stacom.  It  is  always  a  pleasure  to  be  with 
Stacom  and  his  officers.  He  has  a  way  of  kindly  mastery 
that  begets  affectionate  loyalty.  A  man  likes  Stacom  even 
when  he  is  getting  a  call  down  from  him.  At  supper  w'ith 
Doc  Houghton,  Joe  O'Donohue,  Arthur  Martin,  McDer- 
mott,  Fechheimer,  Landrigan,  Ewing  Philbin,  Billy  Burns 
Guggenheim,  and  Joe  McNamara.  A  man  might  search  the 
list  of  all  his  acquaintances  and  not  find  a  set  of  men  so  con- 
genial and  happily  disposed. 

I  looked  up  the  Cure,  an  alert  slender  youngish  man 
wnth  a  keen  intelligent  face,  a  soldier  just  back  that  day 
en  permission  to  keep  the  old  feast  with  his  own  people. 
The  Germans  had  held  him  as  a  hostage  in  19 14  and  had 
thrice  threatened  to  shoot  him,  though  he  had  looked  after 
their  wounded.  If  thoroughness  was  their  motto  they 
would  have  been  wiser  to  do  it,  I  reflected  as  I  talked  with 
him ;  for  he  was  a  man  that  would  count  wherever  he  went, 
and  he  certainly  had  no  use  for  Germans.  'Too  big  a  man 
for  this  place.  We  won't  be  able  to  keep  him  long,"  said 
Stacom's  landlady,  a  pleasant  thoughtful  woman,  whose 
son  of  seventeen  was  just  back  for  the  holidays  from  some 


THE  LUNEVELLE  SECTOR  83 

college  where  he  is  beginning  his  studies   for  the  priest- 
hood. 

The  village  church  was  a  ruin.  Both  sides  had  used  it  to 
fight  from  and  both  sides  had  helped  to  wreck  it.  The  roof 
was  gone  and  most  of  the  side  walls.  The  central  tower 
over  the  entrance  still  stood,  though  the  wooden  beams  above 
had  burned,  and  the  two  big  bells  had  dropped  clean  through 
onto  the  floor.  The  Cure  used  a  meeting-room  in  the  town 
hall  for  his  services,  but  that  would  not  do  for  my  con- 
gregation. The  church  faced  a  long  paved  square,  so  I 
decided  to  set  up  my  altar  in  the  entrance  and  have  the 
men  hear  Mass  in  the  square.  The  church  steps  served 
excellently  for  Communion.  It  is  one  of  the  things  I  wish 
I  had  a  picture  of — my  first  Easter  service  in  France;  the 
old  ruined  church  for  a  background,  the  simple  altar  in  the 
doorway,  and  in  front  that  sea  of  devout  young  faces  pay- 
ing their  homage  to  the  Risen  Savior.  My  text  lay  around 
me — the  desecrated  temple,  the  soldier  priest  by  my  side,  the 
uniforms  we  wore,  the  hope  of  triumph  over  evil  that  the 
Feast  inspired,  the  motive  that  brought  us  here  to  put  an  end 
to  this  terrible  business  of  destruction,  and  make  peace 
prevail  in  the  world.  Here  more  than  a  thousand  soldiers 
were  present,  and  the  great  majority  crowded  forward  at 
Communion  time  to  receive  the  Bread  of  Life. 

I  hiked  it  into  Baccarat  with  the  Battalion.  At  a  point  on 
the  road  the  separated  elements  of  the  Regiment  met  and 
swung  in  behind  each  other.  Colonel  Barker  stopped  his 
horse  on  a  bank  above  the  road  and  watched  his  men  go  by, 
with  feelings  of  pride  in  their  fine  appearance  and  the 
knowledge  of  how  cheerfully  they  had  given  up  their  pros- 
pects of  a  rest  and  were  going  back  into  the  lines  again. 
With  his  usual  kind  courtesy,  he  wanted  to  have  me  ride, 
but  for  once  I  preferred  to  hike,  as  I  was  having  a  good 
time. 

Arriving  in  Baccarat  I  ran  into  Captain  Jack  Mangan, — 
always  a  joyous  encounter.  We  found  a  hotel  and  some- 
thing to  eat;  met  there  Major  Wheeler,  Ordnance  Officer 


84  FATHER  DUFFY»S  STORY 

of  Division,  a  Southerner  of  the  finest  type.  I  tried  to  start 
a  row  between  him  and  Mangan.  I  always  like  to  hear  these 
supply  people  fight — they  battle  with  each  other  with  such 
genial  vigor.  When  they  began  to  swap  compliments  I  left 
them,  to  look  up  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  to  see  if  there  were  re- 
ligious services  in  town  that  I  could  announce  to  my  Protes- 
tant fellows. 


CHAPTER  IV 
THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR 

BACCARAT 

March,  191 8 
To  speak  in  guide-book  fashion,  Baccarat  is  a  town  of 
15,000  people  situated  in  the  wide,  flat  valley  of  the  Meurthe 
River.  It  possesses  a  well-known  glass  factory  and  a  rather 
elegant  parish  church,  whose  elegance  is  just  now  slightly 
marred  by  two  clean  shell-shots,  one  through  its  square 
tower  and  the  other  through  the  octagonal  spire.  The  most 
extensive  ruins,  dating  from  the  German  capture  of  the 
town  in  19 14,  are  those  of  the  blocks  on  both  sides  of  the 
street  between  the  church  and  the  river.  They  were  caused, 
not  by  shell  fire,  but  by  deliberate  arson,  for  some  actions  of 
the  townspeople,  real  or  fancied.  A  few  broken  walls  are 
standing  with  all  the  chimneys  still  intact,  sticking  up 
amongst  them  like  totem  poles.  Charlie  Brooks,  making 
believe  that  the  ruins  were  caused  by  shell  fire,  said  to  me 
"In  case  of  bombardment,  I  know  the  safest  place  to  get. 
Sit  right  up  on  top  of  a  chimney  and  let  them  shoot 
away." 

West  of  the  river  the  hill  rises  steeply  and  is  crowned  by 
the  picturesque  old  walled  village  of  Deneuvre,  dating  cer- 
tainly from  the  early  Middle  Ages,  and,  local  antiquarians 
say,  from  Roman  times.  Here  are  established  our  regi- 
mental headquarters,  with  the  four  special  companies,  and 
the  whole  of  the  third  battalion,  or  what  is  left  of  it,  as 
Company  K  consists  of  Lieutenant  Howard  Arnold,  Ser- 
geant Embree,  Company  Clerk  Michael  Costello  and  two 
privates,  who  were  absent  on  other  duties  when  the  Com- 

85 


86  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

pany  was  gassed;  and  Company  M  is  reduced  to  half  its 
strength.  The  first  battahon  is  very  comfortably  situated 
in  the  Haxo  Barracks  at  the  north  end  of  Baccarat,  the 
2nd  Battalion  being  at  present  at  Neufmaisons,  ten  kilo- 
meters out  toward  the  front  lines.  The  regiment  was  se- 
lected as  division  reserve  on  account  of  the  depleted  strength 
of  our  3rd  Battahon. 

BACCARAT 

April  2,  191 8 

At  last  we  have  located  the  gassed  members  of  our  3rd 
Battalion  in  the  hospitals  at  Vittel  and  Contrexeville ;  and 
today,  as  Lieutenant  Knowles  had  the  kindly  thought  of 
bringing  their  pay  to  them,  Donovan,  Mangan  and  myself 
took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  go  and  see  them.  The 
hospitals  were  formerly  hotels  in  these  summer  resorts  and 
serve  excellently  for  their  present  purpose.  Many  of  the 
men  are  still  in  bed,  lying  with  wet  cloths  over  their  poor 
eyes,  and  many  of  them  have  been  terribly  burned  about  the 
body,  especially  those  whose  duties  called  upon  them  to 
make  exertions  which  used  perspiration.  Among  these  is 
John  McGuire  of  the  Supply  Company  and  many  of  the 
sanitary  detachment,  such  as  Sergeant  Lokker,  Ed.  Mc- 
Sherry,  James  Butler,  Michael  Corbett  and  John  J.  Tierney, 
who  have  been  recommended  for  the  Croix  de  Guerre  for 
courage  and  devotion  in  saving  the  wounded.  Sergeant 
Russell,  with  Corporals  Beall  and  Brochon  of  the  Head- 
quarters Company  are  also  suffering  for  their  zeal  in  main- 
taining liaison. 

But  it  is  Company  K  that  had  to  bear  the  brunt  of  it.  Of 
the  officers,  Lieutenant  Crane  is  in  the  most  critical  condi- 
tion, and  it  was  a  touching  thing  as  I  went  through  the 
ward  to  hear  every  single  man  in  his  platoon  forget  his 
own  pain  to  inquire  about  the  Lieutenant.  Some  of  the 
men  are  still  in  very  bad  shape,  Richard  O'Gorman,  George 
Sicklick,  Val  Prang,  Sergeant  Gleason,  Bernard  Leavy, 
Francis  Meade,  James  Mullin  and  also  Mortimer  Lynch, 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  87 

Christopher  Byrne,  Daniel  Dooley,  Gerard  Buckley,  Harold 
Benham,  Harold  Broe,  Kilner  McLaughlin,  and  Buglers  Nya 
and  Rice.  The  cooks  did  not  escape — Pat  Boland,  William 
Mulcahy,  Moriarty,  Thomas  O'Donnell  and  Michael 
O'Rourke,  who,  by  the  way,  is  one  of  those  Czecho-Slovaks 
who  has  chosen  to  fight  under  a  martial  name.  The  Wis- 
consins  also  have  been  hard  hit,  and  two  of  their  men  here, 
Corporal  John  Sullivan  and  Leo  Moquin,  are  painfully 
burned  on  account  of  their  exertions  in  carrying  others.  I 
have  turned  the  names  of  these  two  in  with  a  recommenda- 
tion for  citation,  with  those  of  Staber,  Farrell,  Ross,  Van 
Yorx,  Montross,  Beall,  Brochon,  McCabe  and  the  medicos 
mentioned.  Sergeant  Leo  Bonnard,  in  liaison  with  the 
French,  has  received  his  cross  on  their  recommendation. 
Lieutenant  Tom  Martin  and  Dr.  Patton  also  received  the 
same  decoration. 

Apart  from  Lieutenant  Crane,  none  of  the  officers  is  in 
serious  condition,  though  more  than  half  of  the  officers  in 
the  battalion  are  in  the  hospital,  including  Major  ]\Ioyna- 
han.  Captains  Hurley,  Merle-Smith,  and  IMeaney,  Lieuten- 
ants Leslie,  Stevens,  and  Rerat,  with  nearly  all  the  lieuten- 
ants of  Company  K  and  M,  and  also  Major  Lawrence  with 
Lieutenants  Patton  and  Arthur  ]\Iartin  of  the  Sanitary  De- 
tachment, who  desei  high  praise  for  their  handling  of  a 
difficult  situation. 

The  Company  M  men  were  not  so  badly  gassed,  with 
the  exception  of  Sergeant  Emerson.  A  good  many  of  them 
were  walking  about  with  eyes  only  slightly  inflamed.  I  was 
immediately  surrounded  by  Eustace,  Flanigan,  Jack  Man- 
son,  Harry  Messmer,  Bill  Lanigan,  Mark  White,  Jock  Cam- 
eron and  a  lot  of  others,  all  clamoring  for  news  about  the 
regiment.  I  made  myself  a  candidate  for  being  canonized 
as  a  saint  by  working  at  least  a  hundred  first  class  miracles 
when  I  announced  that  we  had  come  with  the  pay.  The 
news  was  received  with  a  shout,  "Gimme  me  pants,  Pm 
all  better  now." 

There  was  one  thing  that  disturbed  us.     We  found  most 


88  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

of  our  injured  in  these  two  towns,  but  there  was  still  a  con- 
siderable number  whose  pay  we  had  that  we  could  not  find, 
and  nobody  was  able  to  tell  where  they  had  been  sent. 


BACCARAT 

April  7th,   1918 

The  reports  which  have  arrived  of  the  death  in  hospital 
of  Robert  Allen,  Walter  Bigger  and  Lawrence  Gavin  of 
Company  K  gave  us  our  first  information  concerning  the 
whereaboi4j;s  of  soldiers  whom  we  could  not  discover  in  our 
trip  to  the  hospital.  They  died  at  the  new  Army  Hospital 
at  Bazoilles  near  Neufchateau.  As  Tom  Johnson  of  the 
New  York  Sun  was  visiting  us,  he  offered  to  take  me  back 
with  him  in  his  car  to  see  them.  They  are  in  long,  one- 
story  hospital  barracks  and  most  of  them  are  almost  re- 
covered although  Amos  Dow  and  Herbert  Kelly  are  still 
very  sick  boys.  With  the  assistance  of  the  two  First  Ser- 
geants of  K  and  M,  Tim  Sullivan  and  James  McGarvey, 
who  are  also  patients,  I  paid  them  all  off. 

I  also  gave  them  a  bit  of  new^s  w^hich  was  more  grateful- 
ly received  than  the  pay,  and  that  is  saying  a  great  deal. 
One  of  the  hospital  authorities  told  me  that  a  special  order 
had  arrived  that  men  of  the  165th  who  w^ould  be  fit  for 
duty  by  a  certain  date  should  be  returned  direct  to  the  regi- 
ment without  going  through  a  casual  camp.  He  told  me 
also  that  the  order  was  entirely  an  exceptional  one,  adding 
laughingly  that  he  would  be  glad  to  get  rid  of  them.  He 
said  they  were  the  liveliest  and  most  interesting  lot  of 
patients  he  ever  had  to  deal  with,  but  they  made  themselves 
infernal  pests  by  agitating  all  the  time  to  get  back  to  their 
confounded  old  regiment.  Howard  Gregory  came  up  with 
a  side  car  to  take  me  back  and  I  had  another  chance  to  see 
our  men  in  the  other  two  hospitals  and  was  glad  to  find 
that  they  are  all  on  the  road  to  recovery. 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  89 

REHERREY 

April  25th,  19 1 8 
On  April  23rd,  and  a  miserable  day  of  rain  and  mud  it 
was,  we  relieved  the  Ohios  in  the  positions  on  the  left  of 
our  Division  Sector.  Looking  east  from  Baccarat  one  sees 
only  a  steep  hill  which  forms  the  valley  of  the  Meurthe  and 
blocks  the  view  in  the  direction  of  the  combat  line;  but  a 
road  from  the  north  of  the  town  leads  through  an  oneninsr 
in  the  hills  to  undulating  country  with  small  villages  dotting 
the  landscape  ever}'-  two  or  three  miles.  One  of  these  is 
Reherrey,  which  is  to  be  our  regimental  P.  C.  during  our 
stay  in  this  section.  The  next  village  to  the  east,  called 
IMigneville,  shelters  our  support  battalion,  the  P.  C.  of  the 
advance  battalion  being  at  Montigny,  still  farther  on. 

The  trenches  are  more  varied  and  more  interesting  than 
those  in  the  Forest  of  Parroy.  Those  on  the  left  of  our 
sector  run  along  the  front  edge  of  the  Bois  Bouleaux,  which 
gives  its  occupants  the  shelter  of  trees,  but  leaves  them  in 
a  position  to  see  an  approaching  enemy.  The  trenches  to 
the  right  run  over  open  ground  and  finally  straight  across 
the  eastern  tip  of  the  town  of  Ancervillers,  utilizing  the 
cellars,  broken  walls,  etc.  Machine  gun  nests  have  been 
established  in  some  of  the  cellars  which  dominate  the  open 
spaces,  the  guns  being  raised  to  be  able  to  fire  at  ground 
level  through  carefully  concealed  concrete  openings.  The 
1st  battalion  is  in  line,  the  3rd  in  support,  while  the  2nd 
is  in  "Camp  Mud,"  a  group  of  barracks  to  the  rear  of  us 
in  surroundings  which  provoke  its  title.  Poor  fellows,  they 
would  much  rather  be  in  a  battle. 


REHERREY 

April  28th,  1918 
Went  over  Saturday  to  St.  Pol  where  Companies  L  and 
M  are  in  support  positions  and  passed  the  night  with  Merle- 
Smith   and  his  Lieutenants,   Carroll,   Baker,   Givens  and 


90  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Knowles.  The  village  church  is  pretty  badly  wrecked,  parts 
of  the  walls  and  most  of  the  roof  being  tumbled  down  in 
crumbled  ruins.  One  shell  went  through  just  in  front  of  the 
altar,  but  the  roof  above  the  altar  is  fairly  well  intact.  I  had 
doubts  as  to  whether  I  could  use  it  for  services,  but  Cor- 
nelius Fitzpatrick  and  Frank  Eustace  offered  to  have  it 
cleaned  up  and  put  in  shape  for  me  by  next  morning.  When 
I  arrived  to  say  Mass  I  was  delighted  at  the  transformation 
they  had  effected.  The  half  ruined  reredos  of  the  altar  was 
a  mass  of  bloom  with  big  branches  of  blossoms  which  they 
had  cut  from  the  fruit  trees  in  the  garden.  It  is  one  of  the 
pictures  of  the  war  that  I  shall  long  carry  in  my  mind. 

One  of  the  men  told  me  that  Joyce  Kilmer  had  been  out 
here  on  his  duties  as  Sergeant  of  the  Intelligence  Section 
to  map  out  the  ground  with  a  view  to  its  defence  if  at- 
tacked. As  his  party  was  leaving  the  ruined  walls  he  said, 
"I  never  like  to  leave  a  church  without  saying  a  prayer," 
and  they  all  knelt  down  among  the  broken  fragments  under 
the  empty  vault  and  said  a  silent  prayer — a  beautiful 
thought  of  a  true  poet  and  man  of  God. 


REHERREY 

May  5th,  1918 
Headquarters,  both  American  and  French,  have  been 
very  anxious  for  somebody  to  take  prisoners,  and  we  were 
all  very  much  pleased  this  morning  to  hear  that  a  patrol 
from  Company  D  had  gone  out  and  bagged  four  of  them. 
Out  across  No  Man's  Land  from  Ancervillers  there  is,  or 
used  to  be,  a  few  houses  which  went  by  the  name  of  Ha- 
meau  d' Ancervillers.  There  was  some  reason  to  believe 
that  a  German  outpost  might  be  found  there;  so  at  mid- 
night last  night  a  patrol  of  two  officers  and  twenty-four 
men,  mainly  from  Company  D,  went  on  a  little  hunting  ex- 
pedition. They  crossed  No  Man's  Land  to  the  old  Ger- 
man trenches,  which  they  found  to  be  battered  flat. 

Lieutenant  Edmond  J.   Connelly  remained  with  a  few 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  91 

men  in  No  Man's  Land  to  guard  against  surprise,  and  Lieu- 
tenant Henry  K.  Cassidy  took  the  rest  of  them,  including 
Sergeant  John  J.  O'Leary  of  Company  A,  Sergeant  Thomas 
O'Malley  of  Company  D  and  Sergeant  John  T.  Kerrigan  of 
the  Intelligence  Section  to  examine  the  ruins  of  the  hamlet. 
Part  of  the  wall  of  one  house  was  left  standing.  O'Leary 
led  three  men  to  one  side  of  it,  and  O'Malley  three  others 
to  the  other  side,  while  Lieutenant  Cassidy  approached  it 
from  the  front.  They  were  challenged  by  a  German  sen- 
try and  the  two  Sergeants  with  their  followers  rushed  at 
once  to  close  quarters  and  found  themselves  engaged  with 
six  Germans,  two  of  whom  were  killed,  and  one  wounded, 
the  survivors  dashing  headlong  into  a  dugout. 

Lieutenant  Cassidy,  pistol  in  hand,  ran  to  the  opening 
of  the  dugout  and  called  on  them  to  surrender.  H  any  one 
of  them  had  any  fight  left  in  him  we  would  have  had  to 
mourn  the  loss  of  a  brave  young  officer,  but  they  surren- 
dered at  discretion,  and  our  whole  party,  with  no  casual- 
ties, started  back  as  fast  as  they  could,  carrying  the  wound- 
ed prisoner  and  dragging  the  others  with  them.  It  was 
an  excellent  job,  done  with  neatness  and  dispatch.  Valuable 
papers  were  found  on  the  wounded  man  and  other  infor- 
mation was  obtained  at  Division  by  questioning.  The  only 
thing  to  spoil  it  was  that  two  of  our  men.  Corporal  Joseph 
Brown  and  Charles  Knowlton  got  lost  in  the  dark  coming 
in,  and  have  not  yet  reported.* 


REHERREY 

May  9th,  19 18 
War  is  a  time  of  sudden  changes  and  violent  wrenches  of 
the  heart  strings;  and  we  are  getting  a  taste  of  it  even  be- 
fore we  enter  into  the  period  of  battles.     We  are  to  lose 
Colonel  Barker.     Back  in  Washington  they  are  looking  for 

*  These  men  became  confused  and  wandered  into  the  German  lines 
where  they  were  made  prisoners.  Information  concerning  their  fate 
came  to  us  through  the  Red  Cross  about  two  months  later,  and  both 
rejoined  the  regiment  after  the  Armistice. 


92  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

men  who  know  the  war  game  as  it  is  played  over  here,  and, 
as  Colonel  Barker  has  been  observing  it,  or  engaged  in  it, 
since  the  war  began,  they  have  ordered  him  back  to  report 
for  duty  at  the  War  Department. 

Our  regrets  at  his  going  are  lessened  by  two  considera- 
tions. The  first  is  that  we  feel  he  will  get  his  stars  by  rea- 
son of  the  change  and  it  will  make  us  glad  for  him  and 
proud  for  ourselves  to  see  one  of  our  Colonels  made  a 
General.  The  other  is  the  news  that  his  successor  is  to  be 
Frank  R.  McCoy,  of  General  Headquarters.  He  was  not 
a  Colonel  on  the  General  Staff  when  we  crossed  his  path 
first,  but  Captain  McCoy  of  the  3rd  Cavalry,  stationed  at 
Mission,  Texas.  I  did  not  meet  him  down  there,  but  heard 
a  whole  lot  about  him — all  good — from  Colonel  Haskell, 
and  from  Colonel  Gordon  Johnston  of  the  12th  New  York, 
who  had  been  a  captain  with  McCoy  in  the  3rd  Cavalry, 
About  the  time  we  got  to  Mission  he  was  made  Chief  of 
Staff  to  General  Parker  at  Brownsville.  Later  I  read  of 
his  going  to  Mexico  as  military  attache  with  our  new  Am- 
bassador, Mr.  Fletcher,  and  then  that  General  Pershing  had 
reached  out  after  him  there  to  bring  him  over  here  with  the 
A.  E.  F.  In  the  more  remote  past  he  has  been  Aide  de 
Camp  to  General  Woods,  Military  Aide  at  the  White  House 
under  President  Roosevelt,  and  on  special  duty  for  the 
government  on  various  semi-diplomatic  missions.  H  this 
list  of  employments  had  any  tendency  to  make  me  wonder 
how  much  of  a  soldier  he  was,  it  would  have  vanished 
quickly  after  one  look  at  his  left  breast  which  is  adorned 
with  five  service  bars.  They  say  in  the  army  that  McCoy 
has  done  all  kinds  of  duty  that  an  officer  can  be  called  upon 
to  do,  but  has  never  missed  a  fight — a  good  omen  for  the 
"Fighting  Sixty-Ninth." 

He  is  a  man  of  good  height,  of  spare  athletic  figure, 
with  a  lean  strongly  formed  face,  nose  Roman  and  dominat- 
ing, brows  capacious,  eyes  and  mouth  that  can  be  humorous, 
quizzical  or  stern,  as  I  learned  by  watching  him,  in  the  first 
five  minutes.     He  has  dignity  of  bearing,  charm  of  manner 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  93 

and  an  alert  and  wide-ranging  intelligence  that  embraces 
men,  books,  art,  nature.  If  he  only  thinks  as  well  of  us  as 
we  are  going  to  think  of  him  I  prophesy  that  he  will  have 
this  regiment  in  the  hollow  of  his  hand  to  do  what  he  likes 
with  it.  Everything  helps.  "McCoy,  is  it?  Well,  he  has 
a  good  name  anyway,"  said  one  of  the  "boys  from  home." 

Colonel  McCoy  came  to  us  in  the  lines,  the  P.  C.  being 
at  Reherrey.  The  popottc  (mess)  occupied  two  low-ceiled 
rooms  in  a  three-room  cottage.  We  sat  close  together  on 
benches  at  a  long  plank  table,  but  it  was  a  jolly  company. 
To  give  the  new  Colonel  a  taste  of  his  Regiment  I  told  him 
a  monologue  by  one  of  our  men  that  I  had  overheard  the 
evening  before.  There  are  a  couple  of  benches  right  in 
front  of  my  billet,  in  the  narrow  space  between  the  dung- 
heap  and  the  window,  and  there  is  always  a  lot  of  soldiers 
around  there  in  their  free  time.  They  know  I  am  inside  the 
open  window,  but  pay  no  attention  to  my  presence — a  real 
compliment. 

There  was  a  military  discussion  on  among  the  bunch 
from  Company  C.  They  got  talking  about  the  German 
policy  of  evacuating  the  front  line  trenches  when  we  send 
over  a  concentrated  barrage  preparatory  to  a  raid,  and  then 
letting  fly  at  us  with  their  machine  guns  as  we  return 
empty-handed.  Somebody  said  he  thought  it  was  a  good 
thing.  This  irritated  my  friend  Barney  Barry,  solid  Irish- 
man, good  soldier,  and  I  may  add,  a  saintly-living  man. 
"But  Oi  don't  loike  it,"  he  said,  "Oi  don't  loike  it  at  all.  It 
looks  too  much  loike  rethreatin', — I  think  they  betther  lave 
us  be.  Take  the  foive  uv  us  here — me  and  Jim  Barry  and 
Pat  Moran  and  Moike  Cooney,  and  you  Unger — you're  a 
Dootchman,  but  you're  a  good  man — the  foive  of  us  in  a 
thrench  with  our  roifles  and  what  we'd  have  on  us  to  shoot, 
and  a  couple  uv  exthra  bandoliers,  and  a  bunch  of  thim 
guinny  foot-balls  (hand  grenades)  and  a  bit  of  wire  up  in 
front;  and  if  the  young  officers  u'd  only  keep  their  heads, 
and  not  be  sayin'  'Do  this ;  and  don't  do  that' ;  gettin'  them- 
selves excoited,  and  whot's  worse,  gettin'  us  excoited,  but 


94  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

just  lave  us  be,  I  give  ye  me  wurrd  that  be  the  toime 
mornin'  u'd  come,  and  ye'd  come  to  be  buryin'  thim,  ye'd 
think  ye  had  your  old  job  back  diggin'  the  subway." 

The  Colonel  was  delighted  with  this  sample  of  the  spirit 
of  his  Irish  regiment.  And  I  determined  to  let  him  see  the 
whole  works  at  once.  He  might  as  well  get  the  full  flavor 
of  the  Regiment  first  as  last.  We  had  a  concert  going  on 
in  the  next  room.  Tom  O'Kelly  sang  in  his  fine  full  rich* 
baritone  the  "Low  Back  Car"  and  that  haunting  Scottish 
melody  of  "Loch  Lomond." 

"Give  us  a  rebel  song,  Tom,"  I  called.  "What's  that, 
sir — Father,  I  mean."  McCoy  twinkled  delightedly,  "A 
rebel  song,"  I  repeated.  "Alright,  Father,  what  shall  I 
sing."  "Oh,  you  know  a  dozen  of  them.  'The  West's 
Awake,'  'O'Donnel  Aboo'  or  'A  Nation  Once  Again.' " 
Tom  responded  readily  .with  "O'Donnel  Aboo,"  and  as  its 
defiant  strains  ended  in  a  burst  of  applause  he  broke  into 
the  blood  stirring  old  rebel  ballad,  "The  Wearing  of  the 
Green."  Colonel  McCoy's  face  was  beaming.  He  evi- 
dently likes  things  to  have  their  proper  atmosphere.  I  can 
see  the  old  Irish  69th  is  just  what  he  expected  it  to  be,  and 
what  he  wanted  it  to  be.  I  see  there  is  no  worry  in  his 
mind  about  how  these  singers  of  rebel  songs  will  do  their 
part  in  this  war, 

I  had  a  long  talk  with  him  today  about  the  Regiment, 
and  I  find  him  anxious  to  keep  up  its  spirit  and  traditions. 
They  are  as  dear  to  him  for  their  romantic  flavor  and 
their  military  value  as  those  of  the  Household  Guards  or 
the  Black  Watch  are  to  the  Englishman  or  the  Scot. 


REHERREY 

May  I2th,  1918 

Majors  Moynahan  and  Stacom  are  being  transferred  to 
other  duties,  much  to  everybody's  regret.  It  looks  like  a 
break  up  of  the  old  Regiment.  It  would  be,  I  fear,  if  any- 
body but  ]\IcCoy  were  Colonel.    But  he  has  a  slate  for  pro- 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  95 

motion  already;  a  69th  slate,  and  he  will  put  it  through  if 
anybody  can — Anderson  and  James  McKenna  for  Majors, 
Prout  and  Bootz  and  W.  McKenna  for  Captains.  It  will 
save  the  spirit  of  the  regiment  if  he  can  carry  this  through. 
If  the  vacancies  are  filled  by  replacement  we  shall  not  know 
ourselves  in  a  short  time.  I  feel  all  the  more  grateful  to 
our  new  Colonel  because*  he  had  a  share  in  planning  the 
replacement  idea;  and  besides,  I  know  that  there  are  plenty 
of  officers  at  General  Headquarters,  friends  of  his,  who 
are  anxious  to  get  to  the  front  and  to  have  the  69th  on  their 
service  records.  It  would  be  an  embarrassment  to  any  other 
man  to  go  to  G.  H.  O.  and  ask  them  to  change  the  scheme 
of  filling  vacancies  by  replacement  instead  of  by  promo- 
tion. But  I  know  just  what  will  happen,  when  they  say 
"Why,  you  helped  to  make  this  plan."  He  will  smile  be- 
nignly, triumphantly  and  say  "That  just  proves  my  point. 
Now  that  I  am  in  command  of  a  regiment  I  find  by  first 
hand  knowledge  that  the  original  plan  does  not  work  out 
well." 

DENEUVRE 

May  15th,  1 9 18 
Our  allotted  three  weeks  in  line  being  up,  we  returned 
to  our  original  stations,  the  only  change  being  that  the  2nd 
Battalion  comes  to  Deneuvre,  while  the  3rd  has  to  go  to 
Camp  Mud.  I  am  billetted  with  the  Cure,  a  devout  and 
amiable  priest — who  was  carried  off  as  a  hostage  by  the 
Germans  in  their  retreat  of  19 14  and  held  by  them  for  over 
a  year.  He  likes  to  have  Americans  around,  and  we  fill 
his  house.  Captain  Anderson,  Lieutenants  Walsh,  Howe, 
Allen  and  Parker  are  domiciled  with  me.  Joe  Bruell  and 
Austin  McSweeney  have  their  wireless  in  a  room  in  the 
house,  and  draw  down  all  sorts  of  interesting  messages 
from  the  other  Sergeants.  Sergeants  McCarthy,  Esler  and 
Russell  are  next  door  neighbors,  and  better  neighbors  no 
man  could  choose.  I  can  go  down  to  the  dooryard  if  time 
hangs  on  my  hands  and  hear  remarks  on  men  and  things, 


96  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

made  more  piquant  by  New  York  slang  or  Irish  brogue. 

It  is  a  delight  to  go  to  our  mess  with  McCoy's  stimulat- 
ing wit  and  Lieutenant  Colonel  Mitchell's  homely  philoso- 
phy and  Mangan's  lively  comments,  and  the  various  as- 
pects of  war  and  life  opened  up  by  all  sorts  of  interesting 
people — Bishops,  diplomats,  soldiers  and  correspondents 
who  drift  in  from  afar,  drawn  by  the  magnetism  of  our 
Colonel.  The  food  may  not  always  be  to  the  taste  of  an 
epicure  but  "we  eat  our  Irish  potatoes  flavored  with  Attic 
salt,"  as  Father  Prout  says. 

But  my  chiefest  joy  in  life  is  to  have  Joyce  Kilmer 
around.  In  the  army  it  matters  little  whether  a  man  was 
a  poet  or  a  grave  digger — he  is  going  to  be  judged  by  what 
he  is  as  a  soldier.  And  Joyce  is  rated  high  by  everybody 
from  the  K.  P.  to  the  Colonel  because  he  is  a  genuine  fel- 
low. He  is  very  much  a  soldier — a  Sergeant  now,  and 
prouder  of  his  triple  chevron  as  member  of  the  69th  than  he 
would  be  of  a  Colonel's  eagles  in  any  other  outfit.  If  they 
do  not  let  us  commission  officers  within  the  Regiment  he  will 
come  out  of  the  war  as  Sergeant  Joyce  Kilmer — a  fine  title, 
I  think,  for  any  man,  for  it  smacks  of  the  battlefield  with 
no  confounded  taint  of  society  about  it.  His  life  with  us 
is  a  very  full  and  a  very  happy  one.  At  first  I  selfishly  took 
him  to  help  in  my  own  duties  regarding  statistics.  He 
was  glad  to  help,  but  he  regretted  leaving  a  line  company, 
and  especially  parting  from  a  lot  of  friends  he  had  made 
among  the  Irish  "boys  from  home,"  whose  simplicity 
amused  him  and  whose  earnest  faith  aroused  his  enthu- 
siasm. 

Over  here  he  got  restless  at  being  on  the  Adjutant's  force, 
and  when  Lieutenant  Elmer  began  his  lectures  on  the  work 
and  opportunities  of  the  Intelligence  Section — scouting,  and 
all  the  rest  of  it — Joyce  pleaded  with  me  to  get  him  away 
from  a  desk  and  out  in  the  line.  Now  he  is  happy  all  the 
day  long.  He  has  worked  himself  into  various  midnight 
patrols,  and  Captain  Anderson  has  told  me  to  advise  him 
that  he  lacks  caution  in  taking  care  of  himself,  but  as  Kil- 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  97 

mer  has  told  me  the  same  thing  about  Anderson,  I  feel 
helpless  about  them  both. 

I  know  Kilmer  well.  He  has  evidently  made  up  his 
mind  to  play  the  game  without  flinching,  without  any  ad- 
mixture of  fear.  On  our  last  day  in  Luneville,  when  the 
town  was  being  shelled,  I  called  to  him  to  stand  in  a  door- 
way where  there  was  a  little  less  danger  and  he  answered 
with  a  story  about  Tom  Lacey  and  a  French  Major,  the 
moral  of  which  was  that  a  soldier  is  expendable  and  officers 
not ;  and  the  outcome  of  which  was  that  I  went  forth  and 
walloped  him  till  he  came  in,  though  still  chuckling.  He 
has  been  for  some  time  out  on  an  observation  post  in  a 
beautiful  spot  which  overlooks  the  German  lines,  with 
Watson,  Kerrigan,  Beck,  ]\Iott,  Levinson,  Titterton — all 
great  admirers  of  his.  Whenever  he  gets  a  day  off  he  is 
in  to  see  me  and  we  break  all  the  rules  chatting  till  mid- 
night and  beyond.  Books  and  fighting  and  anecdotes  and 
good  fellows  and  things  to  eat  and  religion;  all  the  good 
-lid  natural  human  interests  are  common  to  us,  with  a 
xlavor  of  literature,  of  what  human-minded  people  have 
said  in  the  past  to  give  them  breadth  and  bottom. 

Kilmer  or  I,  or  both  of  us,  may  see  an  end  to  life  in  this 
war,  but  neither  of  us  will  be  able  to  say  that  life  has  not 
been  good  to  us. 

DENEUVRE 

May  17th,  1918 
Just  over  to  the  Regimental  Supply  Office  to  see  Man- 
gan.  I  am  always  looking  for  reasons  to  spend  a  while  with 
Captain  Jack.  He  has  a  great  outfit.  I  watched  his  trained 
youngsters,  Lacey,  Kennedy,  Burke,  Nulty  and  the  two 
delightful  Drennan  boys  at  their  business  of  taking  care  of 
the  Regiment,  which  they  have  learned  to  do  so  efficiently. 
I  wonder  if  they  will  find  in  civil  life  jobs  to  suit  the  tal- 
ents they  display  here.  The  Regimental  Supply  Sergeants, 
Joe  Flannery  and  Eddie  Scanlon,  could  run  anything.  First 
Sergeant  Comiskey  is  back  with  us,  and  so  is  Harry  ]Mal- 


98  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Ion,  mule-skinner  and  funmaker.  Everybody  was  glad  to 
see  Harry  once  more.  Walter  Lloyd's  gentle  voice  boom- 
ing from  a  nearby  stable  let  me  know  that  the  Company 
kitchen  was  near,  so  I  wandered  in  that  direction  for  a  cup 
of  coffee  f rom  Healy  and  McAviney — always  the  height  of 
hospitality  for  everybody  there.  Stopped  a  row  between 
Frankie  JNIeade  and  Carburetor  Donnelly — Frankie  is  the 
proud  guardian  of  the  Regimental  ratter  and  the  other  boy- 
soldier  passed  a  remark  about  it  that  no  man  would  let  be 
said  about  his  dog.  I  held  up  Charlie  Feick  for  a  canteen, 
and  before  I  left  Henry  and  Klauberg  and  Beverly  had 
dug  me  up  an  O.  D.  suit,  underwear,  socks,  shoe-laces  and 
a  web  belt.     Had  a  good  day. 


BACCARAT 

May  2ist,   1918 

The  new  regulations  provide  for  a  senior  chaplain  in  each 
Division.  I  felt  that  General  Menoher  would  appoint  me 
for  the  job  as  I  am  senior  in  service,  and  I  had  a  notion 
tha^  my  friend  Colonel  MacArthur  would  suggest  my  name. 
It  has  been  a  worry  to  me  as  I  do  not  intend  to  leave  the 
regiment  for  anything  else  on  earth  and  I  am  afraid  I  may 
have  to  go  through  the  war  hanging  around  Division  Head- 
quarters. So  I  asked  Colonel  McCoy  if  he  would  back  me 
in  my  refusal  to  accept  the  office  if  I  had  to  quit  the  regi- 
ment, to  which  I  received  a  hearty  affirmative. 

I  received  news  of  the  outcome  from  McCoy  a  few  days 
later.  Colonel  MacArthur  had  told  him  I  was  to  be  senior 
chaplain,  but  he  was  in  entire  accord  with  my  wish  to  re- 
main with  a  fighting  unit.  Our  Chief  of  Staff  chafes  at  his 
own  task  of  directing  instead  of  fighting,  and  he  has  pushed 
himself  into  raids  and  forays  in  which,  some  older  heads 
think,  he  had  no  business  to  be.  His  admirers  say  that  his 
personal  boldness  has  a  very  valuable  result  in  helping  to 
give  confidence  to  the  men.  Colonel  McCoy  and  Major 
Donovan  are  strong  on  this  point.    Donovan  says  it  would 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  90 

be  a  blamed  good  thing  for  the  army  if  some  General  got 
himself  shot  in  the  front  line.  General  Menoher  and  Gen- 
eral Lenihan  approve  in  secret  of  these  madnesses ;  but  all 
five  of  them  are  wild  Celts,  whose  opinion  no  sane  man  like 
myself  would  uphold. 

At  any  rate,  Colonel  ]\IcCoy  was  so  satisfied  with  the 
result  of  the  outcome  in  my  case  that  he  went  further  and 
said,  "Now,  if  my  chaplain  is  to  be  senior  chaplain  of  the 
Division  it  is  not  right  that  he  should  remain  a  First 
Lieutenant.  He  ought  to  be  a  Major  at  least."  McCoy 
told  me  with  twinkling  eyes,  "MacArthur  said,  'Now,  Mc- 
Coy, if  I  were  you  I  would  not  bring  up  the  question  of 
the  rank  of  Father  Duffy,  for  I  had  serious  thoughts  of 
making  him  Colonel  of  the  165th  instead  of  you.'  You  are 
a  dangerous  man.  Father  Duffy,"  continued  the  genial  Mc- 
Coy, "and  I  warn  you,  you  won't  last  long  around  here." 


DENEUVRE 

May  25th,  1918 
Being  made  Senior  Chaplain  of  the  Division  I 'judged 
that  my  first,  if  not  my  sole  duty,  was  to  give  a  dinner  to 
the  brethren.  We  had  a  meeting  in  the  morning  in  a  large 
room  under  the  Cure's  hospitable  roof,  and  everyone  was 
there.  Chaplains  Halliday,  Robb,  Harrington,  Smith  and 
McCallum  I  had  known  since  our  first  days  in  Camp  Mills, 
and  we  had  worked  together  ever  since  as  if  we  belonged 
to  one  religious  family.  Those  who  were  added  to  our  body 
since  we  came  to  France  impress  us  all  as  being  first  class 
men.  Three  of  them  I  call  the  "Young  Flighbrows"  :  Chap- 
lains N.  B.  Nash  of  the  150th  F.  A.,  who  was  a  Professor 
in  the  Episcopal  Theological  Seminary  at  Cambridge, 
Charles  L.  O'Donnell,  the  poet  priest  of  Notre  Dame  Uni- 
versity, who  is  attached  to  the  117th  Engineers,  and  Eugene 
Kenedy,  who  has  been  a  professor  in  various  Jesuit  Colleges 
and  who  is  now  working  with  the  150th  Machine  Gun 
Battalion,  after  a  month  of  breaking  in  with  our  regiment 


100  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Chaplain  Ralph  M.  Tibbals,  a  Baptist  Clergyman  from  the 
Southwest,  and  Chaplain  William  Drennan,  a  priest  from 
Massachusetts,  were  new  men  to  most  of  "us,  but  made  a  de- 
cidedly favorable  impression. 

We  discussed  a  number  of  matters  of  common  interest 
and  every  single  topic  was  decided  by  unanimous  vote. 
The  clergy  discover  in  circumstances  like  these  that  their 
fundamental  interests  are  absolutely  in  common.  I  do 
not  mean  to  say  that  there  is  any  tendency  to  give  up  their 
own  special  creeds;  in  fact,  they  all  make  an  effort  to  sup- 
ply the  special  religious  needs  of  men  of  various  denomina- 
tions in  their  own  regiments  by  getting  the  other  chaplains 
to  have  occasional  services  or  by  announcing  such  services 
to  the  men.  I  told  Bishop  Brent  that  the  way  the  Clergy  of 
different  churches  got  along  together  in  peace  and  harmony 
in  this  Division  would  be  a  scandal  to  pious  minds. 

I  think  it  would  be  a  good  thing  if  representatives  of 
various  churches  would  have  a  meeting  every  year  at  the 
seashore  in  bathing  suits,  where  nobody  could  tell  whether 
the  man  he  was  talking  to  was  a  Benedictine  Abbot,  a 
Methodist  Sunday-School  Superintendent  or  a  Mormon  El- 
der. They  would  all  find  out  how  many  things  of  interest 
they  have  in  common,  and,  without  any  disloyalty  to  their 
own  church,  would  get  together  to  put  them  over. 

At  this  meeting  there  was  one  thing  that  I  wanted  for 
myself.  Some  day  we  shall  have  three  Chaplains  for  each 
Infantry  regiment,  but  the  time  is  long  in  coming,  and  I 
am  anxious  to  get  someone  to  hold  religious  services  for  my 
Protestant  fellows.  I  have  asked  the  Division  Secretary 
of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  to  supply  me  with  one  of  his  Secretaries 
who  is  a  clergyman,  to  be  attached  permanently  to  the  regi- 
ment ;  promising  that  he  would  be  treated  as  well  as  I  my- 
self. I  have  been  after  this  for  a  long  while  but  the  Divi- 
sion Secretary  has  not  too  many  men,  and  he  is  tied  down 
in  the  placing  of  them  by  the  canteen  situation  which  makes 
it  necessary  to  leave  the  same  man  in  one  place  as  long  as 
possible.      Chaplains   Nash   and   Halliday,   who   are  very 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  101 

close  to  me  in  all  my  counsels,  are  going  with  me  to  Chau- 
mont  to  back  me  up  in  a  request  to  the  G.  H.  Q.  Chap- 
lains— Bishop  Brent,  Chaplain  Moody  and  Father  Doherty, 
to  have  them  ask  the  chief  officials  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  to 
assign  one  of  their  Protestant  clergyman  pennanently  to 
my  regiment. 

I  had  left  the  matter  of  dinner  in  the  capable  hands  of 
the  Regimental  Supply  Sergeant,  Joe  Flannery,  so  every- 
body went  home  satisfied. 

During  my  stay  at  Deneuvre  I  have  seen  a  good  deal 
of  Bishop  Brent,  formerly  Episcopal  Bishop  in  the  Philip- 
pines and  now  Senior  of  the  G.  H.  O.  Chaplains.  He  knew 
Colonel  McCoy  in  the  Philippines,  and  like  everybody  who 
ever  knew  him,  is  glad  to  have  a  chance  to  visit  him.  The 
Bishop  and  I  have  become  good  friends,  the  only  drawback 
being  that  he  talks  too  often  about  getting  me  with  him  at 
G.  H.  Q.,  while  my  battle  cry  is  that  of  every  memljer  of 
the  regiment,  "I  want  to  stick  with  my  own  outfit."  He 
is  anxious  to  have  some  first-hand  experience  of  work  in 
the  trenches  and  he  has  paid  us  the  compliment  of  saying 
that  if  he  can  get  away  he  will  attach  himself  to  the  165th. 
I  hope  he  can  come  for  I  know  that  everybody  will  be  as  at- 
tached to  him  as  I  am  myself,  and  he  on  his  part  will  have 
some  interesting  experiences. 

May  26th,  19 18 
I  have  just  been  talking  with  Donovan,  Anderson,  Man- 
gan  and  others  of  the  old  timers  and  we  all  remarked  on 
what  a  hold  Lieutenant  Colonel  Mitchell  had  gotten  on  us 
during  his  short  stay  amongst  us.  He  was  assigned  to  us 
as  a  replacement  and  drifted  in  so  unassumingly  that  we 
scarcely  knew  he  had  arrived  until  he  was  with  us  a  week. 
But  as  he  has  gone  about  from  place  to  place  doing  all 
kinds  of  jobs, — inspections,  courtmartials,  and  the  like,  we 
have  grown  to  know  him  better,  and  to  like  him  more  the 
more  we  know  him.  He  is  efficient  without  bustle,  authori- 
tative without  bluster,  never  unreasonable  and  full  of  quaint 


102  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

native  humor.  His  father  was  a  Chaplain  in  the  Army 
which  is  perhaps  one  of  the  reasons  why  the  son  and  I  are 
already  like  old  chums. 


BACCARAT 

May  30th,  1918 
The  uniforms  we  wear  as  well  as  the  losses  we  have 
already  sustained  make  us  appreciate  the  significance  of  Me- 
morial Day.  General  IMenoher  left  the  arrangements  for 
a  proper  celebration  of  the  day  to  the  Chaplains.  So  I  called 
a  meeting  at  which  all  were  present.  It  was  an  easy  matter 
to  select  speakers  from  our  various  commands  to  address 
meetings  of  soldiers  in  every  village  in  which  elements  of 
the  Division  were  quartered.  The  regimental  bands  of  the 
Infantry  and  Artillery  Regiments  were  to  be  sent  by  trucks 
from  one  station  to  another,  so  that  all  of  our  soldiers 
should  have  the  benefit  of  their  services. 

The  main  celebration  was  to  be  at  Baccarat  where  our 
Division  Headquarters  were,  and  the  burden  of  arranging 
for  it  fell  on  the  165th,  now  in  reserve.  The  dead  of  our 
Division,  mainly  men  of  the  84th  Brigade,  which  has  been 
in  this  Sector  since  the  beginning  of  March,  are  buried  in 
a  Military  Cemetery;  and  our  first  duty  was  to  pay  them 
solemn  honors.  Polychrom  of  Company  A  made  wreaths 
from  the  flowers  lavishly  ofifered  by  the  people  of  Deneuvre. 
Everybody  of  all  ranks  who  could  be  spared  was  present 
at  the  ceremony,  together  with  large  number  of  the  civilian 
population. '  Children  of  the  town  were  selected  to  place 
the  wreaths  upon  the  graves  of  our  dead,  and  the  last  rest- 
ing place  of  our  French  companions  was  not  neglected. 

After  the  ceremony  Captain  Handy  came  to  me  with  an 
invitation  from  General  Menoher  to  ride  back  with  him. 
General  Menoher  is  a  man  who  begets  loyalty  and  confi- 
dence. Americans  are  better  acquainted  with  the  business 
type  of  man  than  the  military  type,  and  I  think  I  can  best 
characterize  him  by  saying  tliat  if  he  were  out  of  uniform 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  103 

he  would  impress  one  as  a  successful  business  man — one 
of  the  kind  that  can  carry  responsibility,  give  orders  af- 
fecting large  affairs  with  calmness  and  certainty,  and  still 
find  time  to  be  human.  He  is  entirely  devoid  of  posing,  of 
vanity,  or  of  jealousy.  His  only  desire  is  to  see  results. 
Consequently  his  subordinates  are  doing  magnificent  team- 
work, and  the  excellent  condition  of  the  Division  is  due 
to  this  factor  as  well  as  his  direct  care  of  us.  We  are  ex- 
ceedingly fortunate  in  having  such  a  man  to  rule  over  us. 
Colonel  McCoy  saw  to  it  that  the  grave  of  every  one  of 
our  dead  was  properly  honored  on  this  day — in  South- 
ampton, in  Langres,  in  Ancervillers  and  here  in  Baccarat. 
During  the  afternoon  he  and  I  went  to  Croixmare ;  so  like- 
wise did  General  Alenoher  with  Colonel  MacArthur  and 
General  Lenihan  with  Major  Conway.  We  found  that  the 
Cure  and  his  parishioners,  as  also  the  French  soldiers,  had 
kept  the  graves  there  in  beautiful  condition — a  tribute  to 
our  dead  which  warms  our  heart  to  the  people  of  France. 


LETTER   TO   A    CURATE 

June  loth,  1918 

In  spite  of  all  you  tell  me  I  have  lost,  I  have  a  stray  as- 
sortment of  arms  and  legs  left,  ungainly,  I  admit,  but  still 
serviceable,  whether  for  reaching  for  the  bread  at  messtime 
or  for  pushing  me  around  my  broad  parish.  I  hear  tliat  I 
am  dead — wounded — gone  crazy.  I  hate  to  contradict  so 
many  good  people,  but  I  must  say  that  I  know  I  am  alive, 
and  that  I  never  felt  better  in  my  life.  As  for  the  third 
count,  perhaps  I  had  better  leave  it  to  others  to  testify,  but 
I'm  no  worse  than  I  always  was.  I  may  be  considered  a 
bit  off  for  coming  over  here,  but  that's  a  decent  kind  of 
craziness,  and  one  I  am  glad  to  see  becoming  quite  popular. 

I  wish  that  my  case  could  serve  as  a  warning  to  good 
folks  at  home  who  are  distracted  by  all  sorts  of  rumors 
about  their  lads  here.  If  anything  happens  to  any  one  of 
us,  the  folks  will  hear  of  it  from  Washington  within  a  hun- 


104)  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

dred  hours.  If  it  says  "Slightly  Wounded,"  they  may  take 
it  as  good  news.  For  let  me  tell  you,  if  I  was  worrying 
continually  about  the  fate  of  some  dear  one  over  here,  and 
got  word  he  was  "Slighlly  Wounded,"  I  would  sigh  a  sigh 
of  relief  that  the  beloved  was  out  of  harm's  way  and  hav- 
ing a  good  time  for  a  while. 

I  don't  mind  rumors  in  the  army.  They  are  part  of  the 
game.  With  eating  and  growling,  they  constitute  our  chief 
forms  of  recreation.  Fact  is,  I  am  made  the  father  of  most 
of  them  in  this  regiment.  When  some  lad  starts  his  tongue 
going,  and  everybody  tells  him  just  what  kind  of  a  liar  he 
is,  he  says  that  Father  Duffy  said  so,  and  Father  Duffy 
got  it  straight  from  Secretary  Baker  or  General  Pershing, 
or,  who  knows? — by  revelation.  It  is  a  great  compliment 
to  me,  but  a  left-handed  one  to  my  teaching. 

At  home,  though,  rumors  don't  just  interest — they  hurt. 
I  know  how  much  they  hurt,  for  my  pile  of  "agony  letters" 
keeps  mounting  up  with  every  mail.  And  I  can't  answer 
them  all  at  length,  as  I  would  wish — not  if  I  want  to  do 
anything  else. 

First-class  mail  is  the  bane  of  my  life  as  Chaplain.  Like 
everyone  else,  I  don't  mind  reading  it,  but  I  know  w^hat  it 
means  when  it  comes  to  answering  it.  Gosh!  how  I  hate 
that.  I  like  to  keep  on  the  go.  I  have  to  keep  on  the  go  to 
get  anything  done,  with  the  regiment  scattered  in  five  dif- 
ferent villages,  miles  apart,  and  outside  work  to  do  in  the 
other  outfits  for  men  that  want  the  sacraments,  and  hospi- 
tals to  visit.  And  to  have  to  stick  a  whole  day  at  a  table  to 
soothe  sorrows  that  don't  exist,  or  oughtn't  to — whew ! 

The  letters  I  am  most  ready  to  answer  are  from  those 
who  have  gotten  real  bad  news  from  Washington.  God  be 
good  to  them.  I'd  do  anything  for  them.  And  the  ones  I 
am  glad  to  get — if  I  don't  have  to  answer  them  myself — 
are  those  that  put  me  onto  something  I  can  do  for  the  men 
— see  that  Jimmy  keeps  the  pledge,  or  that  Tom  goes  to 
Church,  or  find  what's  the  matter  with  Eddie  who  lost  his 
stripes,  or  break  bad  news  to  Michael,  or  see  that  Jack 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  105 

doesn't  fall  in  love  with  any  of  those  French  hussies,  but 
comes  back  to  the  girl  that  adores  him.  These  all  help,  and 
I  get  round  to  them  in  time — and  make  the  victim  write  a 
letter,  to  which  I  put  my  name  as  censor — a  proof  of  my 
efforts. 

But  the  biggest  bulk  of  my  mail  consists  of  inquiries  why 
no  mail  has  arrived  from  Patrick  for  three  weeks — and  is 
he  dead — or  why  Jerry's  allotment  had  not  been  made. 
When  I  interview  Patrick,  he  informs  me  disgustedly 
that  he  has  written  home  every  twenty  minutes.  And  I 
know  that  before  any  letter  of  mine  can  get  there,  the  Sul- 
livans  will  have  received  a  bunch  of  mail  that  will  make 
them  the  gossips  and  the  envy  and  the  pride  of  the  parish 
till  they  begin  to  get  worried  and  write  to  me  again. 

As  for  the  allotments,  the  nearest  I  come — don't  ask  me 
how  near — to  falling  into  the  sole  vice  of  our  army  of  using 
strong  language  is  when  I  get  a  letter  from  some  poor 
mother  or  wife  about  their  non-payment.  Our  men  have 
been  extraordinarily  decent  about  helping  out  the  folks  at 
home.  But  it  has  been  new  forms  to  make  out,  or  the  de- 
mand for  a  change  of  the  name  of  Mrs.  Michael  J.  Farrell 
to  Mrs.  Mary  Farrell — and  all  the  time  decent  folks  going 
short  at  home,  and  the  best  men  we've  got  fretting  in  the 
trenches.  That's  the  way  these  fountain-pen  soldiers  are 
helping  to  win  the  war.  How  have  they  kept  it  so  secret? 
Even  men  like  those  that  make  up  our  Board  of  Trustees 
have  written  me  that  our  men  are  slack  about  making  allot- 
ments. And  the  poor  fellows  in  most  cases  have  stripped 
themselves  to  ten  dollars  a  month,  and  are  scudding  alon^ 
on  bare  poles  half  way  between  paydays — I  know  all  about 
that,  and  the  Trustees,  all  good  men  and  true,  will  hold  back 
their  language  w^hen  I  report  that  I  had  to  use  their  money 
for  lads  that  had  left  themselves  destitute  for  their  folks, 
while  their  folks  were  being  left  destitute  by  those  people 
in  Washington. 

You  ask  me  to  tell  you  about  my  work  here.  Well,  in 
the  main  it  is  what  I  did  at  home,  though  under  different 


106  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

circumstances.  The  old  Sixty-Ninth  is  a  parish — an  itiner- 
ant parish.  Probably  a  sixth  of  the  "parishioners"  do  not 
look  to  me  for  dogmatic  instruction,  but  you  know  how 
much  that  counts  for  in  my  ordinar}'^  relations  with  them. 
Remember  the  afternoon  last  Spring,  when  Father  Prunty 
went  into  the  play-hall  to  get  helpers  from  my  gang  for  his 
patriotic  gardening  and  found  afterward  that  his  five  vol- 
unteers consisted  of  two  Protestants,  two  Jews  and  Andy 
O'Hare. 

I  have  this  class  of  parishioners  very  much  on  my  con- 
science. I  can't  get  the  other  chaplains  to  help  except  on 
the  few  occasions  when  regiments,  or  parts  of  them  occupy 
the  same  place.  Every  chaplain  has  five  times  what  he  can 
do  to  supply  Sunday  services  for  his  own  scattered  com- 
mand. 

At  any  rate,  I  can  assure  you  that  the  different  elements 
in  the  old  regiment  have  fused  properly.  By  the  way,  I 
cannot  remember  anything  that  delighted  me  more  than 
when  I  heard  Sergeant  Abe  Blaustein  was  to  get  the  Croix 
de  Guerre — he  was  recommended  for  it  by  Major  Donovan 
and  Major  Stacom  (the  pride  of  our  parish)  and  Lieutenant 
Cavanaugh.  He  is  a  good  man,  Abe,  and  the  69th  appre- 
ciates a  good  man  when  it  sees  him.  John  O'Keefe's  poem 
made  a  hit  with  all  of  us. 

That  reminds  me  of  something  at  my  expense.  Captain 
John  Prout  approached  me  with  a  gefiial  grin  to  tell  me 
that  at  our  Christmas  Mass  he  had  seen  a  Jew  boy  pres- 
ent, and  later  on  he  asked  him  "What  were  you  doing  at 
Mass?"  "Oh,  Captain,"  he  said,  "you  know  I'd  go  to  Flell 
with  you."  Prout  said  to  me,  "The  compliment  to  myself 
is  very  obvious,  Father, — I  hope  that  you  will  be  able  to 
find  in  it  one  for  yourself  too." 

But  I  started  to  tell  you  about  my  work.  I  have  a  con- 
gregation of  the  old  faith,  approximately  three  thousand 
souls.  They  are  generally  scattered  through  five  or  six 
French  villages,  when  en  rcpos,  and  more  scattered  still 
through  trenches  and  abandoned  towns  when  in  line. 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  107 

To  begin  with  the  foitn  of  pastoral  activity  you  are  no 
doubt  most  interested  in,  for  you  will  be  getting  a  parish 
one  of  these  days — I  take  up  no  collections.  'Tis  a  sad  con- 
fession to  make,  and  I  expect  to  be  put  out  of  the  Pastor's 
Union  when  I  get  back  for  breach  of  rules.  But  the  lads 
are  not  left  entirely  without  proper  training.  The  old 
French  cures  (God  bless  them,  they  are  a  fine  lot  of  old 
gentlemen)  take  up  the  collection.  A  tremendously  impor- 
tant-looking old  beadle  in  a  Napoleonic  cocked  hat  and 
with  a  long  staff  goes  before,  with  a  money-or-your-life 
air  about  him,  and  in  the  rear  comes  the  apologetic  man- 
nered cure,  or  perhaps  a  little  girl,  cari-}qng  a  little  dish  that 
is  a  stimulus  to  stinginess,  which  is  timidly  pushed  forward 
a  few  inches  in  the  direction  of  the  man  on  the  outside 
seat.  If  the  man  is  an  American  he  grabs  the  dish  and 
sticks  it  under  the  nose  of  his  neighbor,  with  a  gruff  whis- 
per, "Cough  up."  They  cough  up  all  right — if  it  isn't  too 
far  from  payday.  Even  at  that  they  are  good  for  more  of 
the  Cigar  Store  coupons  and  the  copper  washers  that  pass 
for  money  here  than  are  the  local  worshippers.  The  cures 
proclaim  us  the  most  generous  people  in  the  world — and  so 
w^e  are — which  makes  it  unanimous.  They  listen  with  open 
mouths  to  my  tales  of  financial  returns  in  city  parishes  at 
home  and  wish  secretly  that  they  had  started  life  where 
things  are  run  like  that — until  I  tell  them  of  the  debts  "we 
have  to  carry,  and  they  are  content  once  more  that  their 
lot  has  been  cast  in  the  quiet,  old-time  villages  of  Lorraine. 

But  to  do  them  justice,  they  are  most  impressed  by  the 
way  our  men  practice  their  religion.  Two  companies  of  our 
regiment  jam  a  village  church — aisles,  sanctuary,  sacristy, 
porch.  A  battalion  shows  its  good  will  by  filling  the  church- 
yard, the  windows  being  ornamented  by  rough  martial  vis- 
ages which  don't  look  exactly  like  those  of  the  placid  looking 
saints  in  the  stained  glass  above — but  I  feel  that  the  saints 
were  once  flesh-and-blood  people  themselves,  and  that  they 
have  an  indulgent,  perhaps  even  an  admiring  eye,  on  the 
good  lads  that  are  worshipping  God  as  best  they  can. 


108  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

There  is  no  doubt  anyway  about  the  opinion  of  the  good 
priests  who  are  carr}'ing  on  the  work  of  the  dead  and  gone 
saints.  They  are  full  of  enthusiasm  about  our  fellows. 
What  attracts  them  most  is  their  absolute  indifference  to 
what  people  are  thinking  of  them  as  they  follow  their  re- 
ligious practices.  These  men  of  yours,  they  tell  me,  are 
not  making  a  show  of  religion ;  they  are  not  offending  oth- 
ers; they  touch  their  hats  to  a  church,  or  make  the  sign  of 
the  Cross,  or  go  to  Mass  just  because  they  want  to,  with 
the  same  coolness  that  a  man  might  show  in  taking  coffee 
without  milk  or  expressing  a  preference  for  a  job  in  life. 
They  run  bases  with  scapulars  flying,  and  it  don't  occur  to 
them  that  they  have  scapulars  on,  any  more  than  they  would 
be  conscious  of  having  a  button  of  their  best  girl  or  Presi- 
dent Wilson  pinned  to  their  shirts — they  may  have  all  three. 

Come  to  think  of  it,  it  is  a  tribute  not  only  to  our  re- 
ligious spirit,  but  to  the  American  spirit  as  a  whole.  The 
other  fellows  don't  think  of  it  either — no  more  than  I  do 
that  one  of  our  Chaplains  who  is  closest  to  me  in  every 
thought  and  plan  wears  a  Masonic  ring.  We  never  advert 
to  it  except  when  some  French  people  comment  on  our  trav- 
eling together — and  then  it  is  a  source  of  fun. 

I  often  drop  in  on  soldiers  of  other  outfits  around  their 
kitchens  or  in  the  trenches,  or  during  a  halt  on  the  road, 
and  hear  confessions.  Occasionally  Catholic  soldiers  in 
country  regiments,  with  the  small-town  spirit  of  being  loth 
to  doing  anything  unusual  while  people  are  looking  at  them, 
hold  back.  Then  my  plan  is  to  enlist  the  cooperation  of  the 
Protestant  fellows,  who  are  always  glad  to  pick  them  out 
for  me  and  put  them  in  my  clutches.  They  have  a  lot  of 
sport  about  it,  dragging  them  up  to  me  as  if  they  were  pris- 
oners; but  it  is  a  question  of  serious  religion  as  soon  as 
their  confession  begins,  the  main  purpose  of  the  prelimi- 
naries being  simply  to  overcome  a  country  boy's  embarrass- 
ment. It  proves,  too,  that  the  average  American  likes  to  see 
a  man  practice  his  religion,  whatever  it  may  be. 

With  my  own  men  there  is  never  any  difficulty  of  that 


THE  Bx\CCARAT  SECTOR  109 

kind.  I  never  hear  confessions  in  a  church,  but  always  in 
the  public  square  of  a  village,  with  the  bustle  of  army  life 
and  traffic  going  on  around  us.  There  is  always  a  line  of 
fifty  or  sixty  soldiers,  continuously  renewed  throughout  the 
afternoon,  until  I  have  heard  perhaps  as  many  as  five  hun- 
dred confessions  in  the  battalion.  The  operation  always 
arouses  the  curiosity  of  the  French  people.  They  see  the 
line  of  soldiers  with  man  after  man  stepping  forward,  dof- 
fing his  cap  with  his  left  hand,  and  making  a  rapid  sign  of 
the  cross  with  his  right,  and  standing  for  a  brief  period 
within  the  compass  of  my  right  arm,  and  then  stepping  for- 
ward and  standing  in  the  square  in  meditative  posture  while 
he  says  his  penance.  "What  are  those  soldiers  doing?"  I 
can  see  tliem  whispering.  "They  are  making  the  Sign  of  the 
Cross.  Mon  Dieu!  they  are  confessing  themselves."  Non- 
Catholics  also  frequently  fall  into  line,  not  of  course  to 
make  their  confession,  but  to  get  a  private  word  of  religious 
comfort  and  to  share  in  the  happiness  they  see  in  the  faces 
of  the  others. 

Officers  who  are  not  Catholics  are  always  anxious  to  pro- 
vide opportunities  for  their  men  to  go  to  confession;  not 
only  through  anxiety  to  help  them  practice  their  religion, 
but  also  for  its  distinct  military  value.  Captain  Merle- 
Smith  told  me  that  when  I  was  hearing  confessions  before 
we  took  over  our  first  trenches  he  heard  different  of  his  men 
saying  to  his  first  sergeant,  Eugene  Gannon,  "You  can  put 
my  name  down  for  any  kind  of  a  job  out  there.  I'm  all 
cleaned  up  and  I  don't  give  a  damn  what  happens  now." 

That  is  the  only  spirit  to  have  going  into  battle — to  be 
without  any  worries  for  body  or  soul.  If  battles  are  to  be 
won,  men  have  to  be  killed;  and  they  must  be  ready,  even 
willing,  to  be  killed  for  the  cause  and  the  country  they  are 
fighting  for.  While  we  were  still  in  Luneville  the  regiment 
attended  Mass  in  a  body  and  I  said  to  them,  "Much  as  I 
love  you  all  I  would  rather  that  you  and  I  myself,  that 
all  of  us  should  sleep  our  last  sleep  under  the  soil  of  France 
than  that  the  historic  colors  of  this  Old  Regiment,  the  ban- 


110  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ner  of  our  republic,  should  be  soiled  by  irresolution  or  dis- 
graced by  panic." 

The  religion  of  the  Irish  has  characteristics  of  its  own — 
they  make  the  Sign  of  the  Cross  with  the  right  hand,  while 
holding  the  left. ready  to  give  a  jab  to  anybody  who  needs  it 
for  his  own  or  the  general  good.  I  cannot  say  that  it  is  an 
ideally  perfect  type  of  Christianity ;  but  considering  the  sort 
of  world  we  have  to  live  in  yet,  it  as  near  as  we  can  come  at 
present  to  perfection  for  the  generality  of  men.  It  was  into 
the  mouth  of  an  Irish  soldier  that  Kipling  put  the  motto, 
"Help  a  woman,  and  hit  a  man;  and  you  won't  go  far 
wrong  either  way." 

BACCARAT 

May,  1918 

The  Knights  of  Columbus  have  secured  a  splendid  place 
in  Baccarat.  The  Cure  had  a  large  hall  with  extra  rooms 
and  a  nice  yard  outside,  for  the  young  men  of  the  Parish ; 
and  this  he  was  glad  to  hand  over  to  the  K.  of  C.  for  the 
use  of  American  soldiers.  Early  in  the  game  Mr.  Walter 
Kernan  had  tried  to  get  in  touch  with  me  but  had  failed 
as  we  were  moving  around  too  much.  However,  he  had 
sent  me  a  check  for  5,000  francs  with  instructions  to  use  it 
for  the  men.  I  had  no  need  of  money,  as  our  Board  of 
Trustees  were  willing  to  supply  whatever  I  should  ask,  and 
there  were  very  few  things  that  could  be  purchased  on  the 
scale  demanded  by  a  regiment  of  3,600  men.  We  have  now 
received  the  services  of  Messrs.  Bundschuh,  May  and  Mr. 
Kernan's  brother,  Joseph,  with  a  French-American  priest 
whom  I  assigned  to  look  after  the  Catholics  in  two  of  the 
artillery  regiments. 

We  opened  the  building  with  solemn  pomp  and  ceremony 
in  the  presence  of  representatives  of  Division  Headquarters, 
M.  Michaud,  the  Mayor  of  the  City,  Colonel  McCoy  and 
many  of  the  Chaplains  and  a  large  throng  of  officers  and 
men.  With  this  commodious  building  in  addition  to  the 
quarters  of  the  "Y"  the  matter  of  recreation  for  men  in 
town  will  be  well  looked  after. 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  111 

CHASSEURS 

June  loth,  191 8 
Our  Division  has  taken  over  a  new  sector  from  the 
French  just  to  the  right  of  our  hne  bordering  on  the  sector 
occupied  by  the  lowas  and  it  is  at  present  occupied  by  Major 
Donovan  with  Companies  A  and  B  of  his  battahon.  It  has  a 
picturesque  name,  "The  Hunter's  I\Ieeting  Place — Rendez- 
vouz  des  Chasseurs,"  and  is  even  more  picturesque  than 
its  name.  There  is  a  high  hog-back  of  land  jutting  out  to- 
wards the  German  Hne  between  deep  thickly-wooded  valleys. 
When  this  was  a  quiet  sector  the  French  soldiers  in  their 
idle  time  put  a  great  deal  of  labor  on  it  to  make  it  com- 
fortable and  attractive,  and  when  I  came  out  here  a  few 
days  ago  I  could  easily  have  believed  it  if  told  there  was 
no  sucli  a  thing  as  war,  and  that  this  whole  place  had  been 
designed  as  a  rustic  semi-militar}^  playground  for  the  young- 
er elements  on  some  gentleman's  country  estate.  The  offi- 
cers' dugouts  are  against  the  side  of  the  steeply  sloping 
hill  so  that  only  the  inner  portion  is  really  under  ground, 
windows  and  doors  on  one  side  opening  on  terraces  which 
have  flower  beds,  strawberry  plots,  and  devices  made  of 
whitewashed  stones. 

We  dine  al  fresco  under  the  trees.  An  electric  light  plant 
is  installed  and  I  spent  last  night  on  the  Major's  bunk  in- 
dulging an  old  habit  of  reading  late.  Donovan,  like  McCoy, 
always  has  some  books  with  him  no  matter  where  he  goes ; 
and  I  got  hold  of  a  French  translation  of  "Caesar's  Com- 
mentaries," with  notes  by  Napoleon  Bonaparte. 

I  enjoy  being  with  Donovan.  He  is  so  many-sided  in 
his  interests,  and  so  alert-minded  in  every  direction,  and 
such  a  gracious  attractive  fellow  besides,  that  there  is  never 
a  dull  moment  with  him.  His  two  lieutenants,  Ames  and 
Weller,  are  of  similar  type ;  and  as  both  are  utterly  devoted 
to  him,  it  is  a  happy  family.  Ames  takes  me  aside  periodi- 
cally to  tell  me  in  his  boyish,  earnest  way  that  I  am  the  only 
man  who  can  boss  the  Major  into  taking  care  of  himself, 


112        FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

and  that  I  must  tell  him  that  he  is  doing  entirely  too  much 
work  and  taking  too  great  risks,  and  must  mend  his  evil 
ways.  I  always  deliver  the  message,  though  it  never  does 
any  good.  Just  now  I  am  not  anxious  for  Donovan  to 
spare  himself,  for  I  know  that  he  has  been  sent  here  be- 
cause, in  spite  of  its  sylvan  attractiveness,  this  place  is  a  post 
of  danger,  so  situated  that  the  enemy  could  cut  it  off  from 
reinforcements,  and  bag  our  two  companies  unless  the  strict- 
est precautions  are  kept  up. 

Major  Allen  Potts,  a  genial  and  gallant  Virginian,  whQ 
is  now  in  charge  of  the  military  police,  has  obtained  per- 
mission to  bring  up  one  company  of  his  M.  P.'s  to  help  our 
fellows  hold  the  line.  It  is  a  good  idea.  The  M.  P.  have 
a  mean  job  as  they  have  to  arrest  other  soldiers  for  breach 
of  regulations;  and  they  are  exposed  to  resentful  retorts  of 
the  kind,  "Where's  your  coat?"  "Where  you'll  never  go  to 
look  for  it — out  in  No  Man's  Land."  Nobody  can  talk  that 
way  to  Major  Potts's  outfit. 

There  was  a  gas  attack  last  night  on  the  French  sector 
called  Chapellotte  on  the  edge  of  the  bluff  to  our  immediate 
right,  and  Donovan  and  I  went  over  this  morning  to  see 
the  extent  of  the  damage.  As  we  climbed  the  steep  hill 
to  reach  the  French  positions  we  met  Matthew  Rice  of  Com- 
pany A,  who  was  in  liaison  with  the  French ;  and  he  told  us 
in  the  coolest  way  in  the  world  a  story  of  a  sudden  gas  at- 
tack in  the  middle  of  the  night,  which  put  out  of  action 
nearly  two  hundred  men,  leaving  himself  and  four  or  five 
Frenchmen  the  only  surviving  defenders  of  the  hill.  If  the 
same  thing  were  to  happen  at  Chasseurs  the  Germans  could 
easily  follow  it  up  and  capture  the  whole  outfit;  and  I  can 
see  the  reason  for  Major  Donovan's  ceaseless  precautions. 


BACCARAT 

June  isth,   1918 
My  principal  occupation  these  days  is  visiting  the  hospi- 
tals, of  which  there  are  three  in  Baccarat.     The  Spanish 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  113 

Influenza  has  hit  the  Division  and  a  large  number  of  the 
men  are  sick.  The  fever. itself  is  not  a  terrible  scourge,  but 
when  pneumonia  follows  it,  it  is  of  a  particularly  virulent 
type.  Our  deaths,  however,  have  been  few  :  John  F.  Dona- 
hoe  of  Company  F,  Richard  J.  Hartigan  of  Company  I, 
Fred  Griswold  of  Machine  Gun  Company  and  Patrick  A. 
Hearn  of  Company  D,  whose  death  had  a  particular  pathos 
by  reason  of  the  sorrow  of  his  twin  brother  who  is  in  the 
same  Company.  All  in  all,  we  have  been  a  singularly  healthy 
regiment,  whatever  be  the  reason — some  doctors  think  it  is 
because  we  are  a  city  regiment.  We  have  been  almost  ab- 
solutely free  from  the  "Children's  Diseases"  such  as  mumps, 
measles,  scarlet  fever,  diphtheria,  etc.,  which  have  played 
havoc  with  the  efficiency  strength  of  almost  every  other  regi- 
ment in  the  Division,  Occasionally  replacements  introduce 
some  of  those  diseases,  but  they  have  never  made  any  head- 
way. Since  we  left  home  our  full  total  of  deaths  in  a  Regi- 
ment of  thirty-six  hundred  men  has  been,  outside  of  battle 
cases,  just  fourteen.  John  L,  Branigan,  of  Company  B, 
died  in  an  English  hospital.  In  the  Langres  area  we  lost 
Charles  C.  Irons,  Company  G;  Edward  O'Brien,  Company 
M,  and  James  Reed,  Company  E,  by  illness,  and  Sydney 
Cowley,  Company  G,  by  accidental  shooting.  Accidents 
were  also  the  causes  of  the  deaths  of  Corporal  Winthrop 
Rodewald,  Company  H,  Donald  Monroe,  Company  F,  and 
Daniel  J.  Scanlon  of  Company  G,  who  also  left  a  brother 
in  the  Company  to  mourn  his  loss.  Louis  King  and  Joseph 
P.  Morris  of  Company  I  and  George  W.  Scallon  of  Com- 
pany A  died  of  meningitis. 

In  this  sector  we  have  had  just  three  battle  losses.  When 
Company  G  was  in  line,  a  direct  hit  of  a  German  shell  killed 
two  of  our  old-timers,  Patrick  Farrell  and  Timothy  Donnel- 
lan,  and  wounded  Peter  Bohan.  Recently  at  Chasseurs,  Cor- 
poral Arthur  Baker,  a  resolute  soldier,  was  killed  while 
leading  a  daylight  patrol  in  No  Man's  Land.  Sergeant 
Denis  Downing  of  Company  G  was  killed  by  one  of  our  own 
sentries  who  mistook  him  for  a  German. 


114  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

BACCARAT 

June  i6th,  1918 

Donovan's  men  have  been  recalled  from  Chasseurs,  The 
42nd  Division  has  finished  its  preliminary  education  and  is 
to  start  off  for  some  more  active  front  two  days  from 
now.  We  are  to  be  relieved  by  the  77th  Division,  New 
York  City's  contribution  to  the  National  Army.  Today 
while  returning  from  a  funeral  I  met  two  M.  P.'s  from  that 
Division  who  were  members  of  the  Police  Force  at  home. 
Met  also  two  old  pupils  of  mine,  Father  James  Halligan 
and  Lieutenant  Arthur  McKeogh. 


MOYEMONT 

June  19th,  1918 

Yesterday  was  New  York  "Old  Home  Day"  on  the  roads 
of  Lorraine.  We  marched  out  from  Baccarat  on  our  hunt 
for  new  trouble,  and  met  on  the  way  the  77th  Division,  all 
National  Army  troops  from  New  York  City.  It  was  a 
•wonderful  encounter.  As  the  two  columns  passed  each 
other  on  the  road  in  the  bright  moonlight  there  were  songs 
of  New  York,  friendly  greetings  and  badinage,  sometimes 
good  humored,  sometimes  with  a  sting  in  it.  "We're  going 
up  to  finish  the  job  that  you  fellows  couldn't  do."  "Look 
out  for  the  Heinies  or  you'll  all  be  eating  sauerkraut  in  a 
prison  camp  before  the  month  is  out."  "The  Germans  will 
find  out  what  American  soldiers  are  like  when  we  get  a 
crack  at  thern."  "What  are  you  givin'  us,"  shouted  Mike 
Donaldson ;  "we  was  over  here  killin'  Dutchmen  before 
they  pulled  your  names  out  of  the  hat."  "Well,  thank 
God,"  came  the  response,  "we  didn't  have  to  get  drunk  to 
join  the  army." 

More  often  it  would  be  somebody  going  along  the  lines 
shouting  "Anybody  there  from  Greenwich  Village?"  or 
"Any  of  you  guys  from  Tremont?"  And  no  matter  what 
part  of  New  York  City  was  chosen  the  answer  was  almost 
sure  to  be  "Yes."     Sometimes  a  chap  went  the  whole  line 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  115 

calling  for  some  one  man:  "Is  John  Kelly  there?"  the 
answer  from  our  side  being  invariably,  "Which  of  them 
do  you  want?"  One  young  fellow  in  the  77th  kept  calling 
for  his  brother  who  was  with  us.  Finally  he  found  him 
and  the  two  lads  ran  at  each  other  burdened  with  their 
heavy  packs,  grabl^ed  each  other  awkwardly  and  just 
punched  each  other  and  swore  for  lack  of  other  words  un- 
til officers  ordered  them  into  ranks,  and  they  parted  per- 
haps not  to  meet  again.  At  intervals  both  columns  would 
break  into  song,  the  favorites  being  on  the  order  of 

"East  side.  West  side, 
All  around  the  town, 
The  tots  sang  ring-a-rosie 
London  Bridge  is  falling  down. 
Boys  and  girls  together, 
Me  and  Mamie  O'Rourke, 
We  tripped  the  light  fantastic 
On  the  sidewalks  of  New  York. 

The  last  notes  I  heard  as  the  tail  of  the  dusty  column  swung 
around  a  bend  in  the  road,  were  "Herald  Square,  any- 
where. New  York  Town,  take  me  there."  Good  lads,  God 
bless  them,  I  hope  their  wish  comes  true. 


MORIVILLE 

June  22nd,  1918 
Our  first  day's  march  brought  us  to  Moyemont,  our  sec- 
ond a  short  hike  to  Moriville,  where  we  are  waiting  to  en- 
train at  Chatel  sur  Moselle.  I  am  billetted  with  the  Cure 
and  have  sent  Father  McDonald,  an  old  pupil  of  mine  who 
has  just  been  sent  to  me,  to  the  2nd  Battalion,  He  is  not 
well  enough  to  stand  what  we  will  have  to  go  through,  so 
I  have  sent  a  telegram  to  Bishop  Brent  asking  to  have  him 
kept  for  a  time  at  some  duty  where  he  can  regain  his  health. 
Now  I  have  to  turn  my  attention  to  the  Cure,  who  is 
also  an  invalid.     He  is  living  here  in  this  big,  bleak  stone 


116  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

house,  with  an  old  housekeeper  who  is  deaf,  and  the  big- 
gest, ughest  looking  brute  of  a  dog  I  have  ever  seen.  He 
is  run  down  and  dispirited.  We  Americans  don't  like  that 
atmosphere  so  I  started  in  to  chirk  him  up.  First  I  called 
in  Dr.  Lyttlc,  who  pronounced  the  verdict  that  there  was 
no  reason  why  with  rest  and  change  and  a  new  outlook  on 
life  he  could  not  last  for  ten  years. 

Today  is  Sunday  and  I  told  the  lads  in  church  that  I 
wanted  a  collection  to  give  a  poor  old  priest  a  holiday ;  and 
they  responded  nobly.  For  a  second  Mass  I  went  down 
to  McKenna's  town  and  found  a  new  device,  a  green  sham- 
rock on  a  white  back-ground,  over  the  door  of  his  battalion 
headquarters.  His  is  to  be  known  as  the  Shamrock  bat- 
talion of  the  regiment.  After  IVIass  and  another  collectior 
I  took  breakfast  with  him.  I  had  brought  with  me  some 
money  that  Captain  ]\Iangan  owed  him.  While  I  was  at 
breakfast  Mangan  came  in  himself,  and  in  his  presence  I 
handed  the  money  over  to  IMcKenna.  "If  I  didn't  have 
you  around.  Father,  to  threaten  Mangan  with  hell-fire,  Fd 
never  get  a  cent  of  it."  "If  you  weren't  such  a  piker  you 
wouldn't  keep  a  cent  of  it,  now  you've  got  it.  You'd  give 
it  to  Father  Duffy  for  his  poor  old  Cure."  "All  right,  I'll 
give  it,  and  double  it  if  you  cover  it."  That  meant  forty 
dollars  apiece  for  my  nice  old  gentlemen.  But  McKenna 
was  not  satisfied.  "Come  on,  Cassidy,  come  across,"  and 
the  Lieutenant  with  a  smile  on  his  handsome  face  came 
across  with  more  than  any  Lieutenant  can  afford.  Mc- 
Kenna shouted  to  the  others,  "Come  all  the  rest  of  you 
heretics;  you  haven't  given  a  cent  to  a  church  since  you 
left  home,"  and  with  a  whole  lot  of  fun  about  it,  every- 
body gave  generously.  I  could  not  help  thinking  what  a 
lesson  in  American  broadmindedness  the  whole  scene  pre- 
sented. But  the  immediate  point  was  that  I  was  able  to  do 
handsomely  for  my  old  Cure.  I  went  back  to  him,  and 
from  the  different  collections  I  poured  into  his  hat  in  cop- 
per pennies,  bits  of  silver,  dirty  httle  shin-plasters  and 
ten  franc  notes,  the  sum  of  two  thousand  francs.     He  was 


THE  BACCARAT  SECTOR  117 

speechless.  The  old  housekeeper  wept ;  even  the  dog  barked 
its  loudest. 

"I'm  giving  you  this  with  one  condition,"  I  said. 
"Namely,  that  you  spend  it  all  at  once."  "But  ma  foil 
how  can  one  spend  two  thousand  francs  in  a  short  while. 
I  never  had  so  much  money  before  in  all  my  life."  "Of 
course  you  can't  spent  it  in  this  burg.  I  want  you  to  go 
away  to  Vittel,  to  Nancy,  to  Paris,  anywhere,  and  give 
yourself  a  good  time  for  once  in  your  life."  "But  the 
Bishop  would  never  permit  it.  He  has  few  priests  left  and 
cannot  supply  the  parishes  with  them."  "Well,  he  will 
have  to  do  it  if  you're  dead,  and  you'll  be  dead  soon  if 
you  hang  around  here.  Stay  in  bed  next  Sunday  and  have 
your  parishioners  send  in  complaints  to  the  Bishop.  Do 
that  again  the  Sunday  after,  and  by  that  time  the  Bishop 
will  have  to  send  somebody.  Then  you  go  off  and  spend 
that  2,000  francs  on  a  summer  holiday,  and  don't  come 
back  until  you  have  spent  the  last  cent  of  it." 

The  old  gentlemen  gave  a  dazed  assent  to  my  entire 
scheme;  but  I  am  leaving  here  with  little  expectation  that  he 
will  carry  it  all  through.  He  may  get  a  holiday  from  the 
Bishop,  and  he  may  spend  a  little  of  the  money  on  it,  but 
even  if  he  lives  for  ten  years  I  am  willing  to  bet  he  will 
have  some  of  our  2,000  francs  left  when  he  dies.  In  some 
ways  it  is  a  great  handicap  to  be  French. 


BREUVERY 

June  27th,  1918 
On  June  23rd  we  boarded  the  now  familiar  troop  trains 
at  Chatel  sur  Moselle,  and  before  we  were  off  them  we  had 
zig-zagged  our  way  more  than  half  the  distance  to  Paris, 
going  up  as  far  as  Nancy,  down  to  Neuf chateau,  north- 
west again  by  Bar-le-Duc,  finally  detraining  on  June  24th, 
at  Coolus,  south  of  Chalons-sur-lMarne.  We  are  now  in 
five  villages  along  the  River  Coole.  We  have  left  Lor- 
raine at  last  and  are  in  the  province  of  Champagne.     It  is 


118  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

a  different  kind  of  country.  The  land  is  more  level  and 
less  heavily  wooded;  the  houses  are  built  of  a  white,  chalky 
stone  with  gray  tiles  instead  of  red;  and  with  outbuildings 
in  the  rear  of  them — with  the  result  (for  which  heaven  be 
praised)  that  the  dung  heaps  are  off  the  streets.  The  in- 
habitants strike  us  as  being  livelier  and  less  worried,  wheth- 
er from  natural  temperament  or  distance  from  the  battle 
line,  I  do  not  know.  The  weather  is  beautiful  and  it  is 
the  joy  of  life  to  walk  along  the  shaded  roads  that  border 
the  sleepy  Coole  and  drop  in  on  a  pleasant  company  at 
mess  time  to  share  in  their  liveliness  and  good  cheer.  To- 
day it  was  a  trip  to  St.  Ouentin  with  the  Machine  Gun 
Company.  Johnnie  Webb  and  Barnett  picked  me  up  on  the 
road  and  fonned  my  escort,  leading  me  straight  to  the 
kitchen,  where  Sergeant  Ketchum  and  Mike  Clyne  were 
making  ready  for  the  return  of  the  hungry  gunners.  Lieu- 
tenant De  Lacour  wanted  me  to  go  to  Captain  Seibert's 
mess  but  I  preferred  by  lunch  on  the  grass  with  Milton 
Cohen,  John  Kenny,  Ledwith,  McKelvey,  Murphy,  Chester 
Taylor  and  Pat  Shea.    This  is  the  kind  of  a  war  I  like. 


CHAPTER  V 
THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE 

VADENAY  FARM,  CAMP  DE  CHALONS 

July  2nd,   1918 

I  LIKE  this  spot,  but  It  was  a  terrible  place  to  get  to. 
We  got  hurry-up  orders  to  leave  our  pleasant  villages  on 
the  Coole  on  June  26th.  It  was  payday  and  some  of  the 
fellows  had  hiked  it  into  Chalons  and  back  to  find  some- 
thing to  spend  their  money  on.  But  it  was  "pack  your 
kits  and  trek"  for  everybody. 

It  was  a  beautiful  soft  June  night.  No  moon,  but  the 
French  highway  rolled  out  before  us  dull  white  in  the 
gloom,  as  if  its  dust  were  mingled  with  phosphorus.  The 
men  trudged  along  behind — joking  and  singing — it  was  the 
beginning  of  the  march.  After  a  couple  of  hours  we  en- 
tered Chalons,  a  dream  city  by  night.  Not  a  light  was 
visible,  but  the  chalk  stone  buildings  showed  dimly  on 
either  hand,  and  the  old  Cathedral,  with  the  ravages  of 
the  French  Revolution  obscured  by  darkness,  was  more 
beautiful  than  in  the  day.  But  before  we  left  that  town 
behind,  all  the  poetry  had  departed  from  it.  It  seemed  to 
take  hours  and  hours  of  hard  hiking  on  uneven  pavements 
before  the  wearying  men  found  their  feet  on  country  roads 
once  more.  Nobody  knew  how  far  the  column  had  to  go, 
and  every  spire  that  marked  a  village  was  hailed  with  hope, 
and,  I  fear,  cursed  when  the  hope  was  unrealized.  They 
had  a  weary  night  ahead  before  they  reached  their  destina- 
tions. The  headquarters  found  itself  with  Division  Head- 
quarters in  the  Ferme  de  Vadenay,  which  is  not  a  farni  at 
ill,  but  some  long  low  barracks  on  the  Camp  de  Chalons. 

119 


120        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

The  nearest  approach  to  a  farmer  I  saw  there  was  a  French 
soldier,  who  carefully  nursed  a  few  cabbages  to  feed  his 
rabbits.  He  was  a  Breton  fisherman,  who  had  gone  to  the 
war,  and  the  war  had  touched  his  wits.  As  a  younger 
man  he  had  fished  in  the  North  Sea  and  was  the  only  person 
I  ever  found  who  could  confirm  the  existence  of  Captain 
George  MacAdie's  native  town  of  Wyck.  It  was  a  great 
triumph  for  George,  for  my  geographical  skepticism  had 
aroused  a  doubt  as  to  whether  he  had  ever  been  born  at 
all. 

The  Chalons  plains  set  all  of  us  old  Border  veterans  go- 
ing again.  The  first  comment  was  "Just  like  Texas."  A 
broad  expanse  of  flat  brookless  country  with  patches  of 
scrimpy  trees  that  surely  must  be  mesquite.  But  I  delight 
in  it.  There  is  a  blue  sky  over  it  all,  and  the  long  reaches 
for  the  eye  to  travel  are  as  fascinating  and  as  restful  as 
the  ocean.  In  Texas  the  attraction  is  in  the  skies.  Half  of 
it  is  beautiful.  The  half  you  see  by  gazing  at  the  horizon 
and  letting  the  eye  travel  up  and  back  till  it  meets  the  hori- 
zon again.  But  here  the  flat  earth  has  beauties  of  its  own. 
It  is  God's  flower  garden.  The  whole  ground  is  covered 
with  wild  flowers — marguerites  and  bluets  by  millions 
and  big  clumps  of  violets  as  gorgeous  as  a  sanctuary  of 
Monsignori,  and  poppies,  poppies  everywhere.  Colonel  Mc- 
Coy gave  me  a  copy  of  Alan's  Seegar's  poems  with  one 
marked  Champagne,  19 15.  Two  lines  of  it  are  running 
through  my  head  all  day. 

The  mat  of  many  colored  flowers 

That  decks  the  sunny  chalk  fields  of  Champagne. 

Champagne.  The  word  is  a  familiar  one  with  other  as- 
sociations. We  had  thought  that  the  bottles  grew  on  trees 
and  that  the  thirsty  traveler  had  but  to  detach  the  wire  that 
held  them.  And  behold  it  is  a  land  as  dry  as  Nebraska. 
There  are  no  such  vivifying  trees,  nor  lowly  vines,  nor 
even  abundant  water.  A  vastly  over-advertised  country  in 
the  opinion  of  the  present  collection  of  tourists. 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  121 

BOIS  DE  LA  LYRE 

July  7th,   19 18 

Bois  de  la  Lyre — Harp  Woods  since  the  69th  got  here. 
We  have  arrived  in  two  stages.  We  were  to  celebrate  the 
4th  of  July  in  proper  fashion  with  games  and  feasting. 
But  there  was  not  much  with  which  to  hold  high  revelry, 
and  the  games  were  practically  spoiled  by  an  order  to  move. 
Anyway,  our  minds  are  on  other  things.  I  came  on  Terry 
O'Connor,  sitting  with  his  shirt  open  on  account  of  the  heat, 
busily  cleaning  his  rifle.  "Man  dear,"  I  said,  "Where  is 
your  patriotism?  Every  man  home  has  a  flag  in  his  button- 
hole. I'm  ashamed  of  you."  "I've  got  me  roifle"  (patting 
it)  "an'  me  Scafllers"  (pointing  to  the  brown  string  showing 
on  his  bared  neck)  ;  "what  more  does  a  pathriot  need?" 

We  moved  by  night,  as  usual,  but  not  far,  to  the  ficole 
Normale  de  Tin  The  Normal  School  sounded  big  and  fine. 
One  expected  a  square  two-story  red  brick  building  with 
white  sandstone  trimmings — but  we  found  a  collection  of 
half  underground  iron  covered  dugouts,  and  all  overground 
rough  little  board  shacks.  We  would  be  happy  there  now 
for  we  find  that  this  poetically  named  spot  is  some  degrees 
less  attractive.  It  looks  as  if  somebody  had  put  it  up  in  a 
hurry  because  the  cattle  were  out  in  bad  weather.  The 
Officers  are  in  the  sheds,  the  men  out  in  what  they  call 
the  Bois — which  are  probably  thick  enough  for  conceal- 
ment from  an  inquisitive  aeroplane.  But  that  is  all  we  need 
while  this  blessed  weather  holds.  Sunny  France  had  ceased 
to  be  the  joke  it  was. 

And  t|ien,  something  seems  to  be  doing  at  last.  We 
who  are  in  the  know  have  been  hearing  tales  of  plans 
afoot — an  attack  on  the  Chateau  Thierry  salient  at  Chatil- 
lon-sur-Marne  seemed  to  be  the  plan  when  we  first  reached 
these  parts.  The  indications  are  now  that  the  Gemians 
are  due  for  another  inning  and  we  are  to  meet  them  here. 
Anderson  has  gone  up  with  the  2nd  Battalion  to  hold  the 
trenches  with  the  French.  Donovan  and  McKenna  are  in 
support.     There  is  a  big  dugout  in  a  knoll  ahead  of  us — 


122  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

they  call  it  a  hill,  just  as  in  Atlantic  City  any  place  four 
feet  above  tide  water  is  called  a  height — and  we  are  to  move 
there  when  action  begins.  I  am  sitting  on  top  of  it — have 
been  here  all  this  sunny  afternoon  reading  a  book  the 
Colonel  gave  me,  Gabriel  Hanotaux  on  France  under 
Henri  Ouatre — and  I  certainly  do  not  like  the  idea  of 
spending  my  young  life  in  a  dugout  P.  C.  during  action.  I 
am  going  to  tell  Colonel  McCoy  that  my  spiritual  duties 
demand  that  I  visit  Anderson's  Battalion.  He  says  that 
he  wants  his  Officers  to  enjoy  this  war — the  only  war  most 
of  ihem  can  hope  to  have.    And  I  hate  dugouts  anyway. 

To  get  from  Harp  Woods  to  Chapel  Woods  you  go 
north  for  about  four  miles  through  Jonchery  to  St.  Hilaire 
le  Grand — a  bit  of  a  village  which  to  borrow  from  Vol- 
taire's remark  about  the  Holy  Roman  Empire  does  not  look 
particularly  saintly  nor  hilarious  nor  grand.  The  Ohios 
are  on  the  right  of  it,  and  our  Company  E  just  to  the 
west  with  patches  of  blue  Frenchmen  dotted  all  around. 
Follow  the  Ancient  Roman  Way  for  a  kilometer  or  two 
and  you  get  to  a  patch  of  woods  with  tops  of  mounds 
showing  through  them  as  if  large  sized  moles  had  been 
working  there.  It  is  marked  on  the  map  as  Sub-sector 
Taupiniere  in  the  Auberive  sector.  But  we  carry  our 
names  with  us,  and  these  bits  of  the  soil  of  France  are  to 
be  called  while  we  inhabit  them  P.  C.  Anderson,  P.  C. 
Kelly,  P.  C.  Prout  and  P.  C.  Finny;  P.C,  meaning  "Post  of 
Command." 

I  have  spent  the  week  with  Anderson.  He  has  his  P.  C.  in 
an  elephant  hut — a  little  hole  about  five  feet  underground 
with  a  semi-circular  roof  of  corrugated  iron  piled  over  with 
sand  bags  and  earth, — enough  to  turn  the  splinters  of  a  shell. 
I  passed  a  couple  of  days  with  Captain  Charles  Baker  of 
Company  E,  who  is  over  to  the  right,  along  the  Suippes. 
Charles  is  all  energy  and  business,  as  usual.  And  Lieutenant 
Andy  Ellett  came  in  one  night  quite  peevish  because  the 
French  had  countermanded  the  orders  for  a  patrol.  Andy 
likes  the  scent  of  danger.  At  P.  C.  Baker  I  saw  Jim  Murray, 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  123 

whom  I  once  started  out  for  the  priesthood.  I  spent  a  pleas- 
ant day  wandering  about  on  my  lawful  occasions  among  the 
men  in  the  different  positions,  one  of  which  I  found  very 
popular,  as  just  there  the  Suippes  had  actually  enough  water 
for  a  man  to  take  a  decent  bath  in.  At  the  proper  time  I  did 
not  fail  to  discover  the  Company  Kitchen,  located  on  the 
river  bank  in  a  charming  spot.  While  doing  justice  to  a 
good  meal  I  discussed  Mt.  Vernon  politics  with  Carmody 
and  Vahey. 

The  battalion  is  under  French  command.  Colonel  Ar- 
noux  of  the  i  i6th  Infantry  has  us  in  immediate  charge  with 
General  Gouraud  in  high  command.  Arnoux  is  an  elderly 
patient  kindly  man  with  a  lot  of  seasoned  young  veterans 
for  officers  and  for  Chaplain  a  big  jolly  Breton,  whom  the 
men  adore.  The  regiment  is  not  much  higher  in  strength 
than  our  one  battalion.  Like  all  the  regiments  over  here 
i^  has  been  worn  down  by  constant  fighting  and  the  dif- 
ficulty of  finding  replacements.  During  the  week  they  got 
something  to  show  for  the  good  work  they  have  been 
doing  the  past  three  years — the  much  desired  Fourragere,  a 
bunch  of  knotted  cords  worn  hanging  from  the  left  shoul- 
der. Our  fellows  call  them  "pull-throughs,"  after  the 
knotted  cords  they  pull  through  their  rifles  when  cleaning 
them.  It  was  a  very  interesting  ceremony.  Our  officers 
were  invited  to  it  and  those  of  our  enlisted  men  who  wore 
the  French  Croix  de  Guerre,  General  Gouraud,  a  rem.ark- 
able  military  figure  with  an  added  touch  of  distinction  from 
his  empty  hanging  sleeve  and  stiff  leg — decorated  the  regi- 
mental colors  while  the  officers  invested  the  men  with  the 
coveted  mark  of  distinction.  The  General  reviewed  his 
American  Allies,  each  of  the  officers  being  introduced  by 
Major  Anderson.  It  was  a  formal  affair  until  he  came  to 
our  bunch  of  husky  soldiers  who  wore  no  silver  or  gold 
insignia  on  their  shoulders  but  carried  on  their  breasts 
the  red  and  green  ribbon  of  the  Croix  de  Guerre.  Then 
you  can  see  why  every  man  in  his  army  swears  by  him. 
No  cannon  fodder  here,  but  interesting  human  beings.     I 


IM  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

liked  him  for  it,  and  felt  very  proud  of  the  men  we  had 
to  show  him — Corporals  Hagan  and  Finnegan  of  Company 
F,  Sergeants  Coffey,  Murray  and  Shalley  of  Company  G, 
and  Sergeants  Jerome  O'Neill  and  Gunther  and  Corporal 
Furey  of  Company  H.*  I  was  saying  to  myself,  "General, 
you're  an  old  soldier  but  you  never  saw  better  men." 

It  was  a  good  thing  for  all  of  us  to  have  met  the  Gen- 
eral— a  man  that  any  soldier  would  be  proud  to  fight  un- 
der, but  we  were  mighty  careful  not  to  tell  him  that  a 
phrase  from  a  famous  order  of  his  was  a  by-word  amongst 
the  American  Officers  under  him.  He  had  issued  an  ad- 
dress couched  along  the  lines  of  the  Napoleonic  tradition 
in  vigorous  staccato  phrases,  preparing  the  hearts  of  his 
soldiers  for  resistance  unto  death.  The  translator  had 
turned  his  last  hopeful  phrase,  which  promised  them  it 
would  be  a  great  day  when  the  assault  was  broken,  into 
English  as  "It  will  be  a  beautiful  day."  Many  of  the  high- 
ups,  both  French  and  American,  seem  to  think  that  the  idea 
of  a  general  assault  along  these  lines  in  a  direction  away 
from  Paris  is  a  mare's  nest  of  Gouraud's,  but  the  debate 
always  winds  up  with  the  unanimous  chant,  "Oh,  it  will  be 
a  beautiful  day."  At  present  we  are  not  in  the  front  line 
trenches,  but  in  what  are  called  the  intermediate  ones. 
The  General's  idea  is  to  hold  the  front  line  with  a  few 
French  troops  who  will  make  themselves  as  safe  as  possible 
against  the  vigorous  shelling  expected  and  withdraw  behind 
our  lines  when  the  German  Infantry  make  their  attack. 
Then  our  fellows  are  to  have  the  task  of  keeping  goal.  It's 
going  to  bring  the  battle  right  down  to  our  doors,  as  the 
battalion  and  company  headquarters  are  only  one  or  two 
city  blocks  from  where  the  hand  to  hand  fighting  will  have 
to  take  place. 

I  spend  most  of  my  time  amongst  the  men  and  am  very 
much  interested  in  finding  out  how  their  minds  react  at 
the  prospects  of  their  first  big  battle.     The  other  German 

*  These  distinctions  were  won  by  men  of  the  2nd  Battalion  in  a 
coup  de  main  led  by  Lieutenants  Ogle  and  Becker  (also  decorated)  in 
the  Baccarat  Sector. 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  125 

drives  against  the  British  and  the  French  have  been  so 
overwhehningly  successful  that  I  was  afraid  the  soldiers 
might  think  that  whenever  the  Germans  get  started  they 
were  just  naturally  bound  to  walk  over  everything.  I  am 
delighted  to  find  that  these  bits  of  recent  history  have  not 
affected  our  fellows  in  the  slightest.  Jim  Fitzpatrick  of  E 
Company  expressed  the  feeling  of  everybody  when  he  said : 
"Why  would  I  be  afraid  ov  thim?  They're  just  Dootch- 
men,  a'int  they?  and  I  never  in  me  loife  seen  any  four 
Dootchmin  that  I  couldn't  lick."  I  have  often  read  state- 
ments by  reporters  about  men  being  anxious  to  get  into  a 
battle.  I  never  believed  it.  But  I  find  now  at  first  hand 
that  here  at  least  are  a  lot  of  men  who  are  anxious  to  see 
Heinie  start  something.  I  tell  them  that  I  am  desirous 
of  getting  into  our  first  mix-up  right  here.  This  Division 
has  started  out  hunting  trouble  and  if  we  don't  find  it  here 
they  will  keep  us  sloshing  all  over  France  until  we  run  into 
it  somewhere. 

They  will  have  need  of  all  their  courage,  for  if  this  gen- 
eral attack  is  made  it's  going  to  be  a  tremendous  one.  The 
opinion  of  the  French  General  staff  seems  to  be  that  this 
line  will  not  be  able  to  hold.  At  any  rate  they  have  been 
making  preparations  with  that  contingency  in  view.  The 
whole  plain  behind  us  is  organized  for  defense  with  our 
other  two  battalions  in  rough  trenches  and  the  Engineers 
in  reserve.  I  hear  they  are  bringing  up  also  a  Polish  Legion 
to  take  part  in  the  support.  They  have  Seventy-fives  in 
position  for  direct  fire  on  German  tanks,  and  machine  guns 
stuck  everywhere  with  beautiful  fields  of  fire  across  the 
sloping  plain.  Everything  is  so  charmingly  arranged,  that 
I  have  a  feeling  that  some  of  the  people  behind  us  have 
a  sneaking  hope  that  the  Germans  will  sweep  across  the 
first  lines  so  that  they  can  be  met  by  the  pleasant  little 
reception  which  is  being  prepared  for  them  further  back. 
However,  I  think  that  our  friends  back  there  are  going  to 
be  disappointed  unless  the  Germans  can  spare  a  Division 
or  two  to  smother  this  battalion.     Their  orders  are  "Fight 


126  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

it  out  where  you  are,"  which  is  Anderson's  translation  of 
Gouraud's  phrase,  "No  man  shall  look  back ;  no  man  shall 
retreat  a  step." 

Gouraud  means  it ;  and  Anderson  means  it.  I  take  great 
pleasure  in  observing  him  these  days.  A  young  fellow  yet, 
just  29,  and  fresh  from  civil  life — but  a  born  soldier,  with 
the  carefulness  of  a  soldier  in  making  plans  and  in  looking 
after  his  men,  and  the  hardness  of  a  soldier  in  ruling  and 
using  men,  and  a  streak  of  sentiment  carefully  concealed 
which  is  a  part  of  the  soldier's  make-up.  He  has  some 
Scotch  in  him  by  his  name — a  good  thing  for  the  Irish  if  it 
doesn't  make  them  Scotch-Irish — -but  the  military  tradition 
in  his  bringing-up  is  on  the  Duffy  side.  It  is  interesting  to 
me  to  see  the  elements  of  school  training  showing  in  a  man's 
character  and  views.  In  his  views  of  life,  discipline  and 
self-sacrifice,  Anderson  is  a  Christian  Brothers'  boy.  I 
sometimes  feel  that  old  Brother  Michael  had  more  to  do 
with  the  making  of  Major  Anderson  as  I  know  him,  than 
his  own  parents  had.  One  result  of  his  education  had  been 
what  most  people  nowadays  would  consider  a  detriment — 
his  devotion  to  duty  is  so  sincere  that  it  has  produced  the 
effect  of  despising  publicity;  this  he  carries  to  an  extreme. 
Well,  he  may  or  may  not  win  fame  in  this  war,  but  one 
thing  I  know,  that  the  soldiers  of  his  Company  or  of  his 
Battalion  who  alternately  cursed  and  admired  him  during 
the  period  of  training  are  delighted  to  have  him  over 
them  in  a  fight  and  will  unanimously  rank  him  as  one  of 
the  greatest  soldiers  this  regiment  has  ever  produced. 

Last  night  he  and  I  made  the  rounds  of  all  the  trenches. 
General  Gouraud  had  picked  it  as  a  probable  night  for  the 
big  attack,  so  we  started  around  to  get  the  men  in  right 
spirits  for  it.  The  Major's  method  was  characteristic. 
As  the  bright  moonlight  revealed  the  men  in  their  little 
groups  of  two  or  threes,  the  Major  would  ask,  "What  are 
your  orders  here?"  The  answer  always  came,  quick  as  a 
flash,  though  in  varying  words,  "To  fight  it  out  where  we 
are,  sir."     "To  let  nothing  make  me  leave  my  post,  sir," 


THE  CHAMPxVGNE  DEFENSIVE  127 

and  one,  in  a  rich  Minister  brogue,  "To  stay  here  until 
we're  all  dead,  sir."  "Then,  will  you  do  it?"  "Yes,  sir." 
Soldiers  are  not  allowed  to  make  speeches,  but  there's  the 
most  wonderful  eloquence  in  all  the  world  in  the  way  a 
good  man  carries  his  shoulders  and  looks  at  you  out  of  his 
eyes.  We  knew  they  would  stick.  I  had  my  own  few 
words  to  say  to  each  of  them,  whether  they  were  of  the 
old  faith  or  the  new  or  no  faith  at  all.  We  were  two 
satisfied  men  coming  back  for  we  knew  that  the  old  regi- 
ment would  give  a  good  account  of  itself  if  the  assault  were 
made.  The  night  passed  uneventfully  and  this  morning  I 
was  happy  to  have  another  Sunday  for  my  own  work.  A 
French  priest,  a  soldier  in  uniform  (a  brancardier) ,  said 
Mass  for  Company  F  in  the  picturesque  little  soldier's 
chapel  that  gives  the  woods  its  name,  and  gave  General 
Absolution  and  Communion,  while  I  did  the  same  in  suc- 
cessive Masses  for  Company  G  and  Company  H,  and  the 
Wisconsin  fellows. 

I  have  served  notice  on  Anderson  that  unless  he  pro- 
duced some  kind  of  a  war  in  the  next  twenty- four  hours  I 
shall  have  to  quit  him.  I  had  not  been  back  to  the  Regimen- 
tal P.  C.  for  nearly  a  week,  so  on  Friday  I  told  Joe 
Hennessey  that  I  wanted  him  to  come  up  with  a  side  car 
and  bring  me  down.  The  side  car  arrived  yesterday  morn- 
ing but  with  young  Wadsworth  running  it.  He  had  gotten 
impatient  hanging  around  back  there  with  prospects  of  a 
fight  up  front  and  he  secured  the  privilege  of  coming  up 
for  me  so  as  to  get  nearer  -for  a  while  at  least  to  the 
front  line.  It  was  a  great  pleasure  to  be  at  mess  with 
Colonels  McCoy  and  Mitchell  once  more — a  mutual  one 
evidently,  for  they  both  said  that  I  had  been  too  long 
away  and  would  have  to  come  back.  I  begged  of¥  until 
after  Sunday. 

Starting  back  on  foot  I  ran  into  Major  Donovan,  who 
as  usual  walked  me  off  my  feet.  I  had  to  visit  every  foot 
of  his  position  on  both  sides  of  the  Jonchery  road  and  I 
was  glad  when  Major  Grayson  Murphy  come  along  in  a 


128  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

staff  car  and  offered  me  a  lift  any  place  I  wanted  to  go. 
Donovan  and  I  are  both  fond  of  Major  Murphy,  so  I  told 
him  I  would  go  anywhere  in  the  world  with  him  so  long  as 
he  delivered  me  from  D. 

On  our  way  back  to  P.  C.  Anderson  the  Corps  Officer 
who  was  with  him  gave  his  opinion  that  judging  by  past 
performances  the  Germans  should  be  able  to  advance  at 
least  one  kilometer  in  the  massed  attack  that  was  threat- 
ened. I  didn't  say  anything  but  it  gave  me  a  shivery  feel- 
ing, especially  when  I  measured  out  a  kilometer  on  one  of 
Anderson's  maps  and  wondered  just  what  would  have  hap- 
pened to  poor  me  by  the  time  the  gray  mass  of  Germans 
would  reach  the  point  that  the  gentleman  from  the  Staff 
had  conceded  them  in  his  off-hand  way.  I  needed  the  trip 
around  the  trenches  for  my  own  reassurance  and  I  stretched 
myself  out  last  night  for  a  sleep  with  the  comfortable  feel- 
ing that  the  decision  in  this  matter  was  in  the  hands  of  an 
aggregation  of  Irish  stalwarts  who  care  little  for  past  per- 
formances or  Staff  theories. 

We  are  going  to  celebrate  tonight.  Lieutenant  Rerat  is 
to  bring  over  a  few  of  the  French  Officers  ajid  the  admir- 
able John  Pleune  is  off  scouring  the  countryside  and  the 
French  canteens  for  something  to  celebrate  with. 

July  14th,  1918  II  :oo  />.  m. 

We  are  here  in  Kelly's  iron  shack.  Lieutenant  Tom 
Young,  a  thorough  soldier  and  a  good  friend  of  mine,  and 
old  boy  Finnerty  and  Harry  McLean  are  waiting  for  the 
bombardment.  Everything  that  can  be  done  for  the  men 
has  been  done.  There  remains  the  simplest  task  in  the 
world,  though  often  the  hardest — waiting. 

Our  little  Hands  Across  the  Seas  dinner  was  a  jolly 
affair.  Anderson  had  Kelly  and  myself  for  guests  with  his 
own  staff;  Keveny,  Fechheimer  and  McDermott  (Buck 
Philbin — God  bless  him  for  a  fine  youth — was  just  or- 
dered back  to  the  States  and  we  miss  him)  ;  and  Lieutenant 
Rerat  brought  along  tvvo  good   fellows   like  himself — a 


THE  CHA^IPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  1291 

French-Irish  Frenchman  named  DeCourcy  (his  ancestors 
left  France,  on  their  mission  to  teach  the  Enghsh  manners 
and  become  good  Irishmen  themselves,  somewhere  around 
1066,  and  one  of  their  descendants  came  back  to  France 
with  the  Wild  Geese  after  the  Broken  Treaty  of  Limerick) 
and  a  plump  merry  doctor  whose  name  escapes  me.  The 
viands  were  excellent — considering.  And  Dan  Mellett  had 
done  his  noble  best.  Anyway,  we  made  it  a  feast  of  song, 
that  is,  the  others  did.  John  Fechheimer  (whom  Heaven 
has  sent  us  for  our  delight)  has  a  complete  repertoire,  an- 
cient (dating  back  more  than  10  years)  and  modern — 
College  Songs,  Irish  Songs,  Scotch  Songs,  Negro  Songs, 
music  hall  ditties,  sentimental  ballads  and  modern  patriotic 
stuff — Upidee  and  Mother  Machree ;  Annie  Laurie  and  Old 
Black  Joe;  After  the  Ball  and  The  Yanks  are  Coming.  De 
Courcy  received  tremendous  applause  for 

The  prettiest  girl  I  ever  saw 

Was  suckin-a  cidah  sroo  a  sraw. 

When  Rerat  had  explained  the  verbal  niceties  of  the  dic- 
tion, all  joined  with  enthusiasm  in  the  classic  verse 
Oh  the  Infantry,  the  Infantry  with  the  dirt  behind  their  ears, 
The  Infantry,  the  Infantry  that  laps  up  all  the  beers, 
The  Cavalry,  the  Artillery  and  the  blooming  Engineers, 
They  couldn't  lick  the  Infantry  in  a  hundred  thousand  years. 

We  compelled  the  Major  out  of  loyalty  to  his  native 
heath  to  give  us  Down  in  the  Heart  of  the  Gas  House 
District. 

Just  then  the  Adjutant  of  Colonel  Arnoux  stepped  in  to 
give  us  the  news  that  the  attack  was  certain  and  midnight 
the  hour.  So  we  toasted  France  and  America  and  departed 
for  a  final  inspection  of  positions.  Everybody  is  as  well 
fixed  as  he  can  be  made  and  I  have  picked  this  as  the  han- 
diest central  place  to  await  developments. 

July  15th,  191 8 

It  was  12  :04  midnight  by  my  watch  when  it  began.     No 

crescendo  business  about  it.   Just  one  sudden  crash  like  an 


ISO  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

avalanche ;  but  an  avalanche  that  was  to  keep  crashing  for 
five  hours.  The  whole  sky  seemed  to  be  torn  apart  with 
sound — the  roaring  B-o-o-o-m-p  of  the  discharge  and  the 
gradual  menacing  W-h-e-e-E-E-Z  of  traveling  projectiles 
and  the  nerve  racking  W-h-a-n-g-g  of  bursts.  Not  that  we 
could  tell  them  apart.  They  were  all  mingled  in  one  deaf- 
ening combination  of  screech  and  roar,  and  they  all  seemed 
to  be  bursting  just  outside.  Some  one  of  us  shouted, 
''They're  off";  and  then  nobody  said  a  word.  T  stood  it 
about  20  minutes  and  then  curiosity  got  the  better  of  me 
and  I  went  out.  I  put  my  back  against  the  door  of  the 
hut  and  looked  up  cautiously  to  see  how  high  the  protecting 
sand  bags  stood  over  my  head,  and  then  I  took  a  good 
look  around.  I  saw  first  the  sky  to  the  south  and  found 
that  our  own  guns  were  causing  a  comfortable  share  of 
the  infernal  racket.  The  whole  southern  sky  was  punctuat- 
ed with  quick  bursts  of  light,  at  times  looking  as  if  the  cen- 
tral fires  had  burst  through  in  a  ten-mile  fissure.  Then  when 
my  ear  became  adjusted  to  the  new  conditions  I  discovered 
that  most  of  the  W-h-e-e-z-z  were  traveling  over  and  be- 
yond, some  to  greet  the  invaders,  some  to  fall  on  our  own 
rear  lines  and  back  as  far  as  Chalons.  I  crawled  around 
the  corner  of  the  shack  and  looked  tov/ards  the  enemy. 
Little  comfort  there.  I  have  been  far  enough  north  to  see 
the  Aurora  Borealis  dancing  white  and  red  from  horizon  to 
zenith ;  but  never  so  bright,  so  lively,  so  awe-inspiring,  as 
the  lights  from  that  German  Artillery. 

I  stepped  inside  and  made  my  report  to  Lieutenant 
Young,  who  was  busy  writing.  He  called  for  a  liaison  man. 
Harry  McLean — just  a  boy — stepped  out  of  the  gloom  into 
the  candle  light.  He  looked  pale  and  uneasy — no  one  of  us 
was  comfortable — but  he  saluted,  took  the  message,  made 
a  rapid  Sign  of  the  Cross,  and  slipped  out  into  the  roaring 
night.  A  liaison  man  has  always  a  mean  job,  and  gener- 
ally a  thankless  one.  He  has  neither  the  comparative  pro- 
tection of  a  dug-out  or  fox-hole  under  shelling,  nor  the 
glory  of  actual  fight.     Our  lads — they  are  usually  smart 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  131 

youngsters — were  out  in  all  this  devilment  the  whole  night 
and  I  am  glad  to  say  with  few  casualties.  Every  last  man 
of  them  deserves  a  Croix  de  Guerre. 

I  wanted  to  see  Anderson.  He  was  only  40  yards  away 
by  a  short  cut  over  ground.  I  took  the  short  cut — we 
were  not  allowed  to  use  it  by  day — and  had  the  uncom- 
fortable feeling  that  even  in  the  dark  I  was  under  enemy 
observation.  It  was  the  meanest  40  yards  I  had  ever  done 
since  as  a  lad  of  12  I  hurried  up  the  lane  to  my  father's 
door  pursued  by  an  ever-nearing  ghost  that  had  my  shoul- 
der in  its  clutches  as  I  grasped  the  latch.  But  I  went  in 
now  as  then,  whistling.  Anderson  and  Rerat  were  there; 
They  had  a  word  of  comfort  to  tell;  that  General  Gouraud 
had  planned  to  meet  artillery  with  artillery  and  that  our 
fire  was  bursting  on  the  enemy  forces  massed  to  attack  us 
in  the  morning.  Just  then  a  nearer  crash  resounded.  The 
major  spun  in  his  chair  and  fell;  Rerat  clasped  his  knee  and 
cried,  "Oh,  Father,  the  Major  is  killed."  The  Major  picked 
himself  up  sheepishly  as  if  he  had  committed  an  indiscre- 
tion ;  Rerat  rubbed  a  little  blood  off  his  knee  apologetically 
as  if  he  had  appeared  with  dirt  upon  his  face  at  drill;  and  I 
expressed  jealousy  of  him  that  he  had  gotten  a  right  to  an 
easy  wound  stripe. 

Just  then  a  gas-masked  figure  opened  the  door  and  an- 
nounced that  there  were  two  wounded  men  outside.  That 
came  under  my  business  and  it  was  a  relief  to  find  some- 
thing to  do.  I  followed  the  messenger — it  was  Kenneth 
Morford — one  of  two  good  lads  the  Morford  family  gave 
to  the  service.  Around  the  corner  I  came  on  Jim  Kane 
badly  hurt  in  the  legs.  Kenneth  and  I  lifted  him  and  car- 
ried him  with  difficulty  through  the  narrow  winding  trench 
to  the  First  Aid  Station  where  we  left  him  with  the 
capable  Johnny  Walker  and  went  back  for  the  second  man. 
It  was  Schmedlein — his  folks  were  parishioners  of  mine — 
and  he  had  it  bad,  I  was  puffing  by  now  and  blaming  my- 
self that  I  had  not  followed  Major  Donovan's  rules  for 
keeping  in  condition.     As  I  bent  to  the  task  I  heard  Phil 


132  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

McArdle's  voice,  "Aisy  now,  Father.  Just  give  me  a  holt 
of  him.  SHther  him  up  on  my  back.  This  is  no  work  for 
the  likes  of  you."  I  obeyed  the  voice  of  the  master  and 
slithered  him  up  on  Phil's  back  with  nothing  to  do  but 
help  Jim  Bevan  ease  the  wounded  limb  on  our  way  to  the 
dressing  station. 

Corporal  Jelley  of  H — a  fine  soldier — and  Private  Hunt 
of  E — he  had  a  cablegram  in  his  pocket  announcing  the 
birth  of  his  first  born — had  been  killed  by  the  shell  that 
struck  in  front  of  our  dugout,  and  my  friend  Vin  Coryell 
wounded.  We  found  later  that  some  men  of  Company  H 
who  had  been  sent  to  the  French  for  an  engineering  detail, 
had  been  killed — Corporal  Dunnigan,  whom  I  married  at 
Camp  Mills ;  Patrick  Lynn,  Edward  P.  Lynch,  Albert 
Bowler,  Russell  W.  Mitchel,  Patrick  Morrissey,  James 
Summers,  Charles  W.  O'Day  and  Walter  M.  Reilley.  Com- 
pany G  had  also  suffered  losses  during  the  bombardment: 
Paul  jMarchman,  Theodore  Sweet,  Harold  Cokeley,  Pat- 
rick Grimes,  Patrick  Farley,  killed ;  with  Corporal  Harvey 
J.  Murphy  and  Charles  J.  Reilley  fatally  wounded. 

Around  P.  C.  Anderson  there  was  plently  of  shelling  but 
no  further  casualties  until  morning  broke.  At  4:30  the 
firing  died  down  after  a  last  furious  burst  over  our  imme- 
diate positions.  The  French  soldiers  in  front  began  to 
trickle  back  down  the  boyaus  to  the  defensive  positions. 
Our  men  crawled  out  of  their  burrows,  eager  to  catch  the 
first  sight  of  the  enemy.  A  few  wise  old  French  soldiers 
stood  by  to  restrain  them  from  firing  too  soon,  for  in  the 
half  lights  it  is  hard  for  an  unaccustomed  eye  to  discern 
the  difference  between  the  Poilu's  Faded-coat-of-blue  and 
the  field  gray  of  the  Germans.  Nearly  an  hour  passed  be- 
fore one  of  them  suddenly  pointed,  shouting,  "Boche, 
Boche!"  The  enemy  were  appearing  around  the  corners  of 
the  approach  trenches.  Rifle  and  machine  gun  fire  crackled 
all  along  the  front.  The  Germans,  finding  that  this  was 
the  real  line  of  resistance,  went  at  their  job  of  breaking 
it  in  their  usual  thorough  fashion.     Their  light  machine 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  133 

guns  sprayed  the  top  of  every  trench.  Minenwerfer  shells 
and  rifle  grenades  dropped  everywhere,  many  of  them  be- 
ing directed  witli  devilish  accuracy  on  our  machine  gun 
positions.  Many  of  ours  were  wounded.  Sergeant  Tom 
O'Rourke  of  F  Company  was  the  first  man  killed  and  then 
one  of  the  Wisconsins. 

That  day  the  Badgers  showed  the  fighting  qualities  of 
their  totem.  Several  of  their  guns  were  put  out  of  action 
at  the  outset  of  the  fight,  and  practically  all  of  them  one 
by  one  before  the  battle  was  over.  In  each  case  Captain 
Graef,  Lieutenant  Arens  and  the  other  officers,  together 
with  the  surviving  gunners,  set  themselves  calmly  to  work 
repairing  the  machines.  Corporal  Elmer  J.  Reider  fought 
his  gun  alone  when  the  rest  of  the  crew  was  put  out  of 
action,  and  when  his  gun  met  the  same  fate  he  went  back 
through  a  heavy  barrage  and  brought  up  a  fresh  one. 
Privates  William  Brockman  and  Walter  Melchior  also  dis- 
tinguished themselves  amongst  the  brave,  the  former  at 
the  cost  of  his  life.  There  were  many  others  like  jMelchior, 
who,  when  their  gun  was  made  useless,  snatched  rifles  and 
grenades  of  the  fallen  Infantrymen  and  jumped  into  the 
fight.  As  specialists,  they  were  too  valuable  to  be  used  up 
this  way  and  an  order  had  to  be  issued  to  restrain  them. 
Sergeant  Ned  Boone,  who  knows  a  good  soldier  when  he 
sees  one,  said  to  me :  "Father,  after  this  I  will  stand  at 
attention  and  salute  whenever  I  hear  the  word  Wiscon- 
sm. 

Our  own  Stokes  Mortar  men  fought  with  equal  energy 
and  enthusiasm  under  Lieutenant  Frank  McNamara  and 
Sergeants  Jaeger  and  Fitzsimmons  with  Corporals  John 
Moore,  Gerald  Harvey  and  Herbert  Clark.  They  did  not 
take  time  to  set  the  gun  up  on  its  base  plates.  Fitzsimmons 
and  Fred  Young  supported  the  barrel  in  their  hands,  while 
the  others  shoved  in  the  vicious  projectiles.  The  gun  soon 
became  hot  and  before  the  stress  of  action  was  over  these 
heroic  non-coms  were  ver}'^  badly  burned. 

During  this  interchange  of  fusillades  the  Germans  were 


134  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

seen  climbing  out  of  the  approach  trenches  and  taking  their 
positions  for  an  assault  on  the  whole  line. 

They  swept  down  on  our  trenches  in  masses  seeking  to 
overcome  opposition  by  numbers  and  make  a  break  some- 
where in  the  thinly  held  line.  Grenades  were  their  prin- 
cipal weapons — rifle  grenades  from  those  in  the  rear,  while 
the  front  line  threw  over  a  continuous  shower  of  stick  gren- 
ades, or  "potato-mashers."  An  exultant  cry  went  up  from 
our  men  as  they  saw  the  foe  within  reach  of  them.  Many 
jumped  on  top  of  the  trench  in  their  eagerness  to  get  a 
shot  at  them  or  to  hurl  an  answering  grenade.  The  assault 
broke  at  the  edge  of  the  trench  where  it  was  met  by  cold 
steel.  It  was  man  to  man  then  and  the  German  found  who 
was  the  better  man.  The  assaulting  mass  wavered,  broke 
and  fled.  No  one  knew  how  it  might  be  elsewhere,  but 
here  at  least  the  German  Great  Offensive  had  lost  its 
habit  of  victory.  They  were  unconvinced  themselves,  and 
hastened  to  try  again,  this  time  in  thinner  lines.  Again 
they  were  repulsed,  though  some  of  them,  using  filtering 
tactics,  got  up  into  places  where  their  presence  was  dan- 
gerous. One  of  their  machine  gun  crews  had  established 
themselves  well  forward  with  their  light  gun,  where  it  was 
troublesome  to  the  defenders,  and  an  enemy  group  was 
forming  to  assault  under  its  protection.  Mechanic  Timotliy 
Keane  came  along  just  then  in  his  peaceful  occupation  as 
ammunition  carrier,  which  he  was  performing  with  a 
natural  grouch.  Seeing  the  opportunity,  he  constituted  him- 
self tlie  reserve  of  the  half  dozen  men  who  held  the  posi- 
tion. He  found  a  gun  and  grenades  and  leaped  joyously 
into  the  fray ;  and  when  the  attacking  party  was  broken  up 
he  called,  "Now  for  the  gun,  min,"  and  swarmed  over  the 
parapet.  The  others  followed.  The  surviving  Germans 
were  put  out  of  action  and  the  gun  carried  off  in  triumph. 

Again  and  again  the  Germans  attacked,  five  times  in  all, 
but  each  time  to  be  met  with  dauntless  resistance.  By 
2:00  in  the  afternoon  the  forces  of  the  attacking  Division 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  135 

was  spent  and  they  had  to  desist  until  fresh  Infantry  could 
be  brought  up. 

All  this  while  and  through  nearly  three  days  of  the 
battle  the  enemy  used  another  power  which  proved  in  the 
outcome  to  be  more  annoying  than  directly  dangerous.  We 
had  often  read  of  superiority  in  the  air  when  our  side  had 
it.  We  were  now  to  learn  the  reverse  of  the  fine  picture. 
The  German  planes  for  two  days  had  complete  mastery. 
They  circled  over  our  heads  in  the  trenches,  front  and  rear. 
They  chased  automobiles  and  wagons  down  the  road.  You 
could  not  go  along  a  trench  without  some  evil  bird  spitting 
macliine  gun  bullets  at  you.  I  doubt  if  they  ever  hit  any- 
body. It  must  be  hard  to  shoot  from  an  aeroplane.  After 
the  first  day  they  ceased  to  be  terrifying — in  war  one 
quickly  learns  the  theory  of  chances — but  the  experience 
was  always  irritating,  as  if  some  malicious  small  boy  was 
insulting  one.  And  they  must  certainly  have  taken  note  of 
everything  we  did.    Well,  it  was  no  comfort  to  them. 

When  the  Infantry  assault  was  over  the  shelling  began 
again.  They  put  minenwerfer  in  the  abandoned  French 
trenches  and  threw  over  terrific  projectiles  into  ours.  They 
dropped  a  half  dozen  shells  on  Captain  Prout's  P.  C.  and 
utterly  ruined  that  humble  abode,  Prout,  with  recollec- 
tions of  his  native  Tipperary,  said,  "Yes,  Father,  I  got 
evicted,  but  I  never  paid  a  penny  of  rent  to  any  land- 
lord." 

In  spite  of  these  events  the  issue  of  the  day's  battle  was 
not  in  doubt  after  lo  :oo  o'clock  that  morning.  There  had 
been  anxious  moments  before,  especially  when  many  ma- 
chine guns  were  put  out  of  action  and  the  call  for  further 
fire  from  our  artillery  met  with  a  feeble  response.  I 
dropped  in  on  Anderson.  True  to  his  motto,  "Fight  it  out 
where  you  are,"  he  was  putting  the  last  touches  to  his  prep- 
arations for  having  his  clerks,  runners  and  cooks  make  the 
last  defense  if  necessary. 

"Do  you  want  some  grenades,  Padre?"  was  his  ques- 
tion. 


ISe        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

"No,  Allie,"  I  said,  "every  man  to  his  trade.     I  stick  to 


mine." 


"Well  here,  then :  this  is  my  battalion  flag,"  stroking  the 
silk  of  the  colors.  "If  things  break  bad  in  the  battle  you 
will  see  that  it  don't  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  Burn 
it  up  if  it  is  the  last  thing  you  find  time  to  do  before  you 
go. 

"All  right,  I  shall  look  out  for  your  flag.  That  is  a 
commission  that  suits  my  trade." 

And  I  received  what  was  to  be  his  last  bequest — if  things 
went  bad.  I  said  no  more,  but  in  my  ears  was  humming 
"Down  in  the  heart  of  the  Gas  House  District  in  Old  New 
York." 

They  breed  good  men  there.  Over  in  Anderson's  old 
Company  E,  now  in  the  able  hands  of  Captain  Baker,  there 
were  a  lot  of  Anawanda  braves  who  met  the  attack  with 
the  same  fiery  zest  as  their  comrades  on  the  left,  as  I  shall 
tell  in  its  place.  I  was  not  long  with  Anderson  when  in 
sweeps  Kelly  as  brisk  and  jaunty  as  if  he  were  on  his  way 
to  the  Fair  at  Kilrush  in  his  native  County  Clare  on  a  fine 
Saturday  morning, 

"How  are  things  going,  Mike?"  said  the  Major. 

"No  trouble  at  all,"  said  the  Captain.  "We've  got  them 
beat." 

But  there  was  still  trouble  ahead.  All  afternoon  the 
trench  mortar  shells  and  whiz-bangs  kept  bursting  in  the 
whole  sector,  making  the  work  of  litter  bearers  and  liaison 
men  very  difficult.  Also  the  task  of  burying  the  dead,  which 
Mr.  Jewett  of  the  Y's  athletic  department  volunteered  to 
superintend  for  me  with  the  sturdy  assistance  of  Corporal 
Michael  Conroy  of  Company  H. 

Company  H  was  in  support — the  most  thankless  and  dif- 
ficult sort  of  a  job  for  any  unit,  whether  Company,  Regi- 
ment or  Division.  It  is  called  upon  for  detachments  which 
must  go  up  under  shell  fire,  and  go  in  where  the  battle  is . 
hottest,  and  in  unfamiliar  surroundings.  The  unit  generally 
gets  little  public  credit  for  its  share  in  the  fight  though 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  137 

military  men  know  that  it  is  a  compliment  to  be  held  in 
support.  It  means  that  the  Chief  Commander  has  confi- 
dence that  the  smaller  fractions  into  which  it  may  have  to 
be  split  are  under  well  trained  and  competent  leaders. 
However,  nobody  likes  the  job.  Certainly  big  courageous 
Captain  Jim  Finn  did  not  like  it.  He  wanted  to  lead  his 
own  company  in  the  fight  and  the  H  men  would  rather 
fight  under  their  great  hearted  Captain  than  under  any 
other  leader  in  the  world.  That  pleasure  was  denied  them, 
but  the  Company  surely  did  honor  to  the  training  and  the 
spirit  their  Captain  put  into  them.  I  saw  a  platoon  going 
up  the  boyait  with  Lieutenant  Wheeler,  all  of  them  flushed 
with  the  joy  of  action.  "Over  the  top  with  Fighting  Joe," 
called  John  O'Connor,  from  the  words  of  Tom  Donohue's 
song.  Their  services  were  needed  often  on  the  15th  to  sup- 
port the  gallant  defenses  of  Companies  F  and  G. 

On  the  morning  of  the  i6th  there  was  another  furious 
assault.  A  whole  German  Battalion  attacked  one  of  the 
defense  positions  and  for  a  time  the  situation  looked  seri- 
ous. Lieutenant  Young  of  F  was  killed  while  organizing 
the  resistance.  Lieutenants  Wheeler  and  Anderson  of  H 
and  Sears  of  F  took  all  kinds  of  chances  in  meeting  the 
situation  and  were  carried  of¥  wounded.  Some  parties  of 
Germans  managed  to  get  up  into  the  trench.  Joe  Daly, 
while  carrying  ammunition,  almost  ran  into  a  German.  The 
latter  was  the  more  excited  of  the  two,  and  before  he  could 
recover  his  wits,  Daly  had  snatched  a  rifle  which  was  lean- 
ing against  the  trench,  whirled  it  over  his  head  like  a  shil- 
lelah,  and  down  on  the  German's  skull.  Then  he  ran  into 
the  middle  of  the  fight. 

Sergeant  Bernard  J.  Finnerty  and  Corporal  Thomas 
Fitzgerald  of  H  saw  a  group  of  Germans  who  had  en- 
sconced themselves  in  an  angle  of  the  approach  trench 
whence  they  were  doing  terrible  damage  with  their  potato 
mashers.  Michael  Tracy,  a  crack  shot,  who  had  done  great 
work  that  day  with  his  rifle,  made  a  target  of  himself 
trying  to  find  a  better  spot  to  shoot  from,  and  got  wounded. 


138        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

But  they  had  to  be  dislodged.  So  Finnerty  and  Fitzgerald 
rushed  down  the  trench,  hurled  over  hand  grenades  into 
the  party,  and  destroyed  it — but  at  the  cost  of  their  own 
heroic  selves.  John  F.  O'Connor,  Mechanic  of  Company 
O,  jumped  on  the  parapet  to  get  a  position  to  bomb  out  a 
machine  gun  crew  which  were  sheltered  in  a  hollow.  He 
drove  them  into  the  open  where  our  own  machine  guns 
settled  them. 

The  places  of  the  wounded  Lieutenants  of  H  Company 
were  taken  by  Sergeants  Eugene  Sweeney  and  Jerome  and 
William  O'Neill  (two  of  'The  three  O'Neills  of  Company 
H" ;  the  third,  Daniel,  being  First  Sergeant,  was  with  Cap- 
tain Finn).  In  Company  F  Sergeants  Timothy  McCrohan 
and  Thomas  Erb  with  Corporals  James  Brennan  and  John 
Finnegan  led  the  fighting  under  Captain  Kelly  and  Lieu- 
tenants Marsh  and  Smith.  Bernard  Finnegan  and  Matt 
Wynne  refused  to  cjuit  when  badly  wounded.  William 
Cassidy,  Company  Clerk,  who  could  not  content  himself 
with  that  work  while  the  fight  was  on,  and  Corporal 
Michael  Leonard,  an  elderly  man  who  had  volunteered 
when  men  with  a  better  right  to  do  so  were  satisfied  to 
wave  the  flag — these  too  won  great  renown.  They  and  the 
others  routed  the  enemy  out  of  the  trenches,  following  them 
over  the  top  and  up  the  boyatis.  Cassidy  and  Leonard 
were  killed,  and  my  old  time  friend,  Sergeant  Joe  O'Rourke 
of  H,  and  many  another  good  man.  Sergeant  William 
O'Neill  was  wounded,  but  kept  on  fighting,  till  death 
claimed  him  in  the  heat  of  the  fray.  His  brother,  Jerome, 
still  battled  valiantly  and  he  was  always  worth  a  hundred 
men.* 

Eugene  Sweeney  was  twice  wounded  and  refused  to  re- 
tire till  the  enemy  was  chased  utterly  from  the  field.    When 

*  The  three  O'Neills  and  Bernard  Finnerty  as  also  Sergeant  Spillane 
of  Machine  Gun  Company  came  from  the  town  of  Bantry.  "Rebel 
Cork"  added  new  leaves  to  its  laurel  wreath  of  valor  in  this  battle  on 
the  plains  of  Champagne. 


TPIE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  139 

his  wcnmds  were  dressed  he  insisted  on  returning  to  the 
hnes. 

Corporal  John  Finnegan  had  been  wounded  in  the  leg  the 
day  before.  He  tied  a  bandage  around  the  wound  and 
stayed  where  he  was.  He  was  with  Lieutenant  Young 
when  that  leader  was  killed  and  ran  to  avenge  him.  A 
shell  burst  near  him  and  he  was  hurled  in  the  air,  falling 
senseless  and  deaf.  I  saw  him  in  the  First  Aid  Station, 
a  little  way  back,  where  he  had  been  carried.  The  lads 
there  had  ripped  up  his  breeches  to  re-bandage  his  earlier 
wound.  He  was  just  coming  to.  They  told  me  he  was 
shell  shocked.  "Shell  shocked,  nothing,"  I  said.  "A  shell 
could  kill  John  Finnegan,  but  it  could  not  break  his  nerves." 
Just  then  he  got  sight  of  me.  "There's  na\vthin'  the  matther 
with  me,  Father,  exceptin'  that  Fm  deef.  They  got  the 
Lootenant  and  I  haven't  squared  it  with  thim  yet.  Fm 
goin'  back."  I  told  him  he  must  stay  where  he  was  at  least 
till  I  returned  from  the  Battalion  Dressing  Station,  which 
was  500  yards  down  the  old  Roman  Road. 

Going  out  I  saw  IVIarquardt,  Hess  and  Kleinberg  carry- 
ing a  litter.  I  offered  to  help  and  found  it  was  Dallas 
Springer,  a  dear  friend  of  mine  since  Border  days,  now 
badly  wounded.  We  got  him  with  difficulty  down  the 
shelled  road  to  the  Battalion  Dressing  Station  where  I 
found  the  Surgeons,  Doctors  Martin,  Cooper  and  Landri- 
gan  working  away  oblivious  of  the  shells  falling  around. 
Landrigan  had  been  out  most  of  the  night  of  the  big 
bombardment  arranging  for  the  evacuation  of  the  wounded. 
I  put  Dallas  down  beside  Michael  Leonard,  a  Wisconsin  lad 
named  Pierre,  and  Harold  Frear,  a  slim,  plucky  lad  whom 
we  had  rejected  at  the  Armory  for  underweight  when  he 
applied  for  enlistment  just  a  year  ago,  but  who  had  pestered 
us  all  till  we  let  him  by.  I  was  told  that  Lester  Snyder  of 
our  Sanitary  Detachment  had  been  brought  in  nearly  dead, 
a  martyr  to  his  duty,  having  gone  out  to  bandage  the 
wounded  under  heavy  fire,     It  was  a  consolation  to  me  to 


140        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

recall  the  devout  faces  of  all  five  of  them  as  I  gave  them 
Communion  a  day  or  two  before. 

Between  looking  after  these  and  others  who  kept  coming 
in  it  was  a  good  while  before  I  got  back  to  the  First  Aid 
Station  in  the  trenches  and  John  Finnegan  was  gone.  They 
had  kept  him  for  some  time  by  telling  him  he  was  to  wait 
for  me.  But  after  a  rush  of  business  they  found  John 
sitting  up  with  a  shoe  lace  in  his  hand.  "Give  me  a  knife," 
he  said,  "I  want  to  make  holes  to  sew  up  my  pants."  Johnny 
Walker  had  mine  but  he  wouldn't  lend  it.  "Lie  down  and 
be  still."  "All  right,"  said  Finnegan,  "I  have  the  tools 
God  gave  me."  He  bent  his  head  over  the  ripped  up 
breeches  and  with  his  teeth  tore  a  few  holes  at  intervals  in 
the  hanging  flaps.  He  carefully  laced  them  up  with  the 
shoe-string,  humming  the  while  "The  Low  Back  Car." 
Then  he  got  up.  "Where's  me  gun?"  "You  are  to  wait 
for  Father  Duffy.  He  wants  to  see  you."  "Father  Duffy 
done  all  for  me  I  need,  and  he'd  be  the  last  man  to  keep 
a  well  man  out  of  a  fight.  Fm  feeling  fine  and  I  want  me 
gun.  Fm  going  back."  He  spied  a  stray  rifle  and  seized 
it.  "Keep  out  of  me  way,  now,  I  don't  want  to  fight  with 
the  Irish  excipt  for  fun.  This  is  business."  So  wounded, 
bruised,  half  deaf,  John  Finnegan  returned  to  battle.  Im- 
mortal poems  have  been  written  of  lesser  men. 

The  attacks  on  the  position  of  Company  G  were  not  so 
bitter  and  persistent  as  Company  F  had  to  sustain.  The 
G  men  felt  rather  hurt  about  it,  but  their  genial  Captain 
smilingly  tells  them  that  it  was  because  the  enemy  know 
they  could  never  get  a  ball  through  where  G  Company 
soldiers  kept  the  goal.  On  the  15th  the  enemy  certainly  got 
a  taste  of  their  quality.  A  strong  attack  pushed  in  at  a 
thinly  held  spot  and  were  making  off  with  a  machine  gun. 
Lieutenant  Ogle  mustered  his  platoon,  sped  over  the  top 
and  down  upon  the  enemy  with  grenades  and  cold  steel. 
A  short  sharp  fight  ensued.  The  gun  was  carried  back 
with  shouts  of  laughter  and  in  a  few  moments  was  barking 
with    vicious   triumph.      Sergeant    Martin    Murphy,    Cor- 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  141 

porals  John  Farrell,  Michael  Hogan  and  Thomas  Ferguson 
— four  soldiers  of  the  jolly,  rollicking  Irish  type,  were 
Ogle's  mainstays  in  this  dashing  fight.  Lieutenant  Boag 
was  wounded,  but  his  platoon  was  ably  handled  by  Ser- 
geant John  McNamara. 

When  Front's  dugout  was  smashed  to  pieces  by  shell  fire, 
Sergeant  Martin  Shalley,  who  is  the  very  type  and  pattern 
of  the  Irish  soldier,  took  charge  of  the  rescue  work  and 
dug  out  the  buried  men  in  time  to  save  their  lives.  An- 
other shell  destroyed  the  kitchen  of  Cook  William  Leaver. 
Thus  relieved  from  his  peaceful  occupation  he  got  himself 
a  gun  and  belt  and  ran  out  into  the  fight  garbed  in  his  blue 
overalls.  Michael  Foody,  tiring  of  being  made  the  cockshot 
of  aeroplanes  which  were  flying  low  over  the  trenches,  de- 
termined to  try  reprisals,  and  leaning  back  against  the 
trench,  began  to  discharge  his  automatic  rifle  in  the  direc- 
tion of  one  that  was  particularly  annoying  to  him.  It  was 
a  long  chance,  but  before  he  had  emptied  his  feeder  he  had 
the  joy  of  seeing  the  plane  wabbling  out  of  control  and 
finally  making  a  bad  landing  back  of  the  German  lines. 

Corporal  John  G.  Moore  lived  up  to  the  best  traditions 
of  his  gallant  Company.  He  had  been  wounded  but  re- 
fused to  go  back.  Later  his  post  was  suddenly  occupied  by 
half  a  dozen  Germans.  They  called  upon  him  to  surrender, 
but  Moore  does  not  know  that  word  in  German  or  in  any 
other  language.  He  says  he  took  it  to  mean  a  command 
to  fire,  so  he  started  to  put  hand  grenades  over  the  plate 
and  the  two  Germans  that  were  left  made  quick  tracks  for 
the  exit  gate.  Moore's  delivery  is  hard  to  handle.  Alfred 
Taylor  also  proved  his  mettle  by  sticking  to  his  post  when 
wounded  and  insisting  furthermore  on  joining  a  raiding 
party  the  same  day. 

Raiding  parties  were  G  Company's  stock  in  trade.  Lieu- 
tenants Ogle  and  Stout  revel  in  them.  They  were  out  at 
night  looking  for  the  trouble  that  did  not  come  their  way 
often  enough  by  day.  One  of  these  patrols  fell  upon  what 
they  called  a  bargain  sale  and  "purchased"  new  German 


142        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

boots  and  underwear  for  the  whole  Company.  John  Ryan 
got  left  behind  in  one  of  these  raids  and  had  to  lie  for  two 
days  in  a  shell  hole  with  Germans  all  around  him.  He 
finally  got  back  with  valuable  information  concerning  move- 
ments of  the  enemy. 

Further  to  the  east  and  separated  from  the  other  com- 
panies by  a  battalion  of  the  loth  Chasseurs  was  Company  E 
under  Captain  Charles  D.  Baker.  During  the  bombard- 
ment only  one  man,  Michael  Higgins,  was  killed.  The  at- 
tacks of  the  enemy  on  the  next  two  days  were  of  die  filter- 
ing kind,  and  were  easily  repulsed,  George  McKeon  being 
the  only  man  slain. 

By  the  i8th  they  began  to  grow  weary  of  these  trivial 
actions  and  Captain  Baker  ordered  two  platoons  to  go 
a  raiding.  The  first  platoon,  under  Lieutenant  Andrew  L. 
Ellett  and  Acting-Sergeants  Malloy  and  McCreedy,  went  up 
the  boyau  on  the  left.  They  had  not  gone  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  when  they  saw  Germans  in  a  trench.  Douglas  Mac- 
Kenzie,  in  liaison  with  the  French,  reported  them  as  gather- 
ing for  an  attack.  The  Lieutenant  climbed  out  of  the  trench 
to  get  a  better  view,  and  Matt  Cronin  got  out  behind  him 
with  his  automatic  rifle  to  start  things  going.  Some  of 
the  enemy  were  in  plain  view  and  Cronin's  weapon  began 
pumping  merrily.  The  enemy  responded  and  he  received 
a  wound.  The  fight  was  on.  It  was  a  grenade  battle.  Our 
men  rose  to  it  with  the  same  zest  they  had  shown  when 
they  fought  their  boyish  neighborhood  fights,  street  against 
street,  in  Tompkins  Park  or  Stuyvesant  Square.  But  this 
was  to  the  death.  Both  Sergeant  Malloy  and  Archie  Skeats 
took  that  death  in  their  hands  when  they  caught  up  German 
grenades  out  of  the  ditch  and  hurled  them  back  at  the 
enemy.  Lieutenant  Ellett's  men  were  far  from  their  base 
of  supplies.  Three  times  they  fell  back  along  the  boyau 
as  their  ammunition  ran  out;  and  three  times  with  fresh 
grenades  they  advanced  to  meet  the  foe.  The  Lieutenant 
was  wounded,  but  a  hole  or  two  in  him  never  mattered  to 
Andy  Ellett.     He  withdrew  his  men  only  when  he  felt  he 


GENERAL   LENIHAN.    LIEUTENANT    GROSE,    COLONEL   MITCHELL,    FATHER 
DUFFY,    MR.    GEORGE    BOOTHBY    OF    THE    "y,"    AND    JUDGE    EGEMAN, 
OF   THE    K.    OF   C. 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  143 

Tiad  done  all  that  was  necessary.  Then  he  handed  over  his 
charge  to  Sergeant  Frank  Johnston,  a  warrior  every  inch, 
who  had  joined  up  with  Anderson's  old  company  for  the 
war  because  he  knew  Anderson  of  yore.  He  had  fought 
with  him  many  a  time  in  the  Epiphany  Parish  School. 

The  other  platoon  was  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Tarr 
with  William  Maloney  and  Michael  Lynch  as  Sergeants. 
Dick  O'Connor,  who  always  went  to  battle  with  scng,  was 
the  minstrel  of  the  party,  his  war  song  being  "Where  do  we 
go  from  here,  boys  ?"  John  Dowling,  Cowie,  Joyce,  Gavan 
and  McAleer  went  ahead  to  scout  the  ground.  They  passed 
through  some  underbrush.  Suddenly  they  flushed  two  Ger- 
mans. Dowling  fired  and  shouted,  "Whirroo  me  buckos, 
here's  our  mate."  His  cry  was  answered  by  Maloney,  a 
mild-mannered  Celt,  who  knows  everything  about  fighting, 
except  how  to  talk  of  it  afterwards.  Lieutenant  Tarr  gave 
the  order  and  led  his  whole  platoon  over  the  top  across 
the  level  ground  and  up  to  the  trench  where  the  Germans 
held  the  line.  It  was  grenades  again  and  hand  to  hand 
fighting  on  top  of  it.  A  party  of  the  Germans  fled  to  the 
left.  They  heard  the  battle  of  EUett's  platoon  from  there 
and  they  turned  with  upthrown  hands  and  the  cry  "Kam- 
erad."  Dowling  helped  the  first  one  out  of  the  trench 
by  the  ear.  "Aisy  nov/,  lad,  and  come  along  with  me. 
The  Captain  is  sitting  forninst  the  blotter  to  take  your  pedi- 
gree." Back  went  most  of  the  platoon  with  the  prisoners, 
their  mission  accomplished.  Eleven  prisoners  had  been 
taken  and  fifty  Germans  left  dead  upon  the  field.  But  the 
never  satisfied  Maloney  elected  himself  to  cover  the  retreat 
with  Hall,  Breen  and  Hummell;  and  with  such  a  leader 
they  kept  battling  as  if  they  were  making  a  Grand  Offensive 
until  they  were  ordered  to  withdraw. 

I  have  been  to  the  Third  Platoon  of  Company  E  and 
everybody  talked  about  that  patrol  at  once.  Everybody 
except  Maloney.  But  everybody  else  was  talking  about  Ma- 
loney.   I  looked  around  to  see  what  Maloney  would  have  to 


144.  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

tell.  And  I  found  no  Maloney.  Maloney  had  fled,  sick  of 
hearing  about  Maloney. 

This  was  practically  our  last  shot  in  the  battle.  The 
German  attack  had  evidently  come  to  a  complete  stand- 
still. They  even  lost  their  command  of  the  air  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  17th,  when  a  fleet  of  British  aeroplanes 
had  come  along  and  driven  them  to  cover.  On  our  part 
we  were  preparing  to  become  the  aggressors.  The  3rd 
Battalion  was  being  brought  forward  to  relieve  the  2nd, 
and  to  take  command  of  both  came  our  good  old  Lieutenant 
Colonel,  jaunty  and  humorous  as  always  in  a  fight  and 
without  a  worry  except  as  to  whether  he  and  I  had  enough 
smokes  to  last.  All  care  vanished  when  my  orderly.  Little 
Mac,  sneaked  up  from  where  I  had  left  him  in  the  rear, 
bringing  two  cartons  of  cigarettes. 

Today  we  received  definite  word  of  what  had  happened 
meanwhile  in  the  support  Battalions.  During  the  bombard- 
ment, young  Wadsworth  was  killed  at  Headquarters,  and  I 
lost  other  good  friends  in  Company  B — Sergeant  Harry 
Kiernan,  as  good  a  man  as  he  looked,  and  that  is  a  great 
compliment;  Arthur  Viens,  one  of  my  own  parish  lads, 
and  Joseph  Newman,  and  Archie  Cahill,  mortally  wounded. 
Louis  Cignoni  of  Company  C  and  Sam  Forman  of  the 
Machine  Gun  Company  were  also  killed.  Sergeant  Charles 
Lanzner  of  Company  A  was  killed  while  doing  brave  work 
as  a  volunteer  carrying  a  message  to  Company  B  under  the 
fearful  cannonading.  The  Polish  Battalion  also  had  met 
with  a  savage  reception  that  night. 

The  French  gave  news  that  the  enemy  was  held  in  every 
part  of  the  long  front,  with  the  exception  of  a  portion  of 
the  line  around  Chateau  Thierry  and  running  up  the  north- 
east side  of  the  salient.  The  old  Rainbow  had  not  a  single 
dent  in  it.  I  got  our  fellows  stirred  up  by  telling  them 
that  they  had  gone  and  spoiled  one  of  the  loveliest  plans  that 
had  ever  been  prepared  by  a  General  Staff.  "What  do  you 
mean,  spoil  their  plans?  All  we  spoiled  were  Germans!" 
"That's  just  the  trouble.    The  men  who  planned  this  battle 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  145 

did  not  really  expect  you  to  stick,  and  they  were  all  ready 
to  give  the  Germans  a  terrible  beating  after  they  had 
walked  through  you  and  gotten  out  into  the  open  space. 
The  trouble  was  that  you  fellows  did  not  know  enough  to 
run  away,  and  the  Generals  finally  had  to  say,  'We  shall 
have  to  scrap  our  beautiful  plans  and  fight  this  battle  out 
where  those  fool  soldiers  insist  on  having  it  fought.'  " 

Around  midnight  we  were  told  that  we  would  be  relieved 
by  morning.  Why  ?  No  one  knew.  Where  were  we  going? 
No  one  knew.  The  French  were  to  take  our  place.  They 
were  slow  in  coming.  We  wanted  to  be  away  before  sun- 
rise or  the  enemy  would  have  a  fine  chance  to  shell  our 
men  as  they  made  their  way  over  the  plains.  I  waited 
the  night  there  in  Kelly's  shack,  impatient  for  the  relief  to 
come  ere  dawn.  Finally  the  Poilus,  their  blue  uniform  al- 
most invisible  by  dark,  began  to  appear.  I  started  off  with 
Mr.  Jewett  down  the  road  to  St.  Hilaire.  We  picked  up 
Bill  Neacy  with  a  Headquarters  detachment,  and  found  a 
back  road  down  to  Jonchery.  I  watched  for  the  dawn  and 
German  planes,  filled  with  anxiety  for  our  withdrawing 
columns.  But  dawn  came  and  no  shelling,  and  shortly 
afterwards  I  fell  into  the  kindly  hands  of  Major  Donovan, 
and  soon  good  old  John  Kayes  and  Arthur  Connelly  had  a 
beefsteak  on  the  fire  for  us.  The  2nd  Battalion  came  drift- 
ing in  in  small  parties,  and  reported  everybody  safe.  Then 
I  saw  Pat  Kinney  and  knew  that  the  Colonel  was  some- 
where about.  He  had  come  out  to  look  after  his  men.  I 
certainly  was  glad  to  see  him,  and  I  got  the  reception  of  a 
long  lost  brother.  He  bundled  me  into  his  car,  and  in  a 
short  time  had  me  wrapped  in  his  blankets  and  taking  a  long 
deferred  sleep  in  his  cot  at  Bois  de  la  Lyre. 


VADENAY 

July  2ist,  1918 

We  packed  up  our  belongings  in  the  Bois  de  la  Lyre  on 
July  20th  and  went  to  this  town  of  Vadenay.      Colonel 


146  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

McCoy  had  a  ceremony  that  afternoon  which  shows  one 
reason  why  we  are  so  devoted  to  him.  I  had  written  up 
the  recommendations  for  citations  furnished  by  Company 
Commanders  during  the  recent  battle ;  and  the  Colonel,  fear- 
ing they  might  not  go  through,  embodied  them  in  a  regi- 
mental citation  and  read  them  to  the  assembled  soldiers.  It 
was  fine  and  stimulating;  the  2nd  Battalion  is  as  proud  as  if 
it  had  won  the  war  and  the  others  are  emulous  to  equal  its 
fame. 

I  went  back  to  my  billet  and  found  a  visitor  who  an- 
nounced himself  as  Father  James  M.  Hanley  of  the  Diocese 
of  Qeveland.  I  remembered  the  name.  I  received  a  letter 
some  two  months  ago,  a  fresh  breezy  letter,  full  of  the  un- 
restrained impatience  of  a  young  priest  w'ho  had  come  over 
to  take  part  in  the  war  and  had  landed  in  an  engineer  outfit 
not  far  from  a  base  port.  He  appealed  to  me  as  an  old- 
timer  to  tell  him  how  to  beat  this  mean  game.  I  answered 
and  told  him  what  to  say  to  Bishop  Brent,  and  Bishop 
Brent,  nothing  loth,  had  sent  him  to  me  for  the  42nd 
Division.  The  more  I  talked  with  the  new  Qiaplain  the 
more  69th  he  looked  to  me  ;  so  I  said  to  him :  'T  am  going 
to  keep  you  with  me.  Father  McDonald  is  in  ill-health  and 
has  orders  for  a  new  assignment.  We  shall  have  a  big 
battle  in  a  week  or  two  and  w^e  shall  need  two  men  because 
there  is  a  good  chance  of  one  of  us  being  bumped  off. 
Major  Anderson's  battalion  will  very  probably  be  in  re- 
serve so  you  report  to  Major  McKenna  and  tag  along  with 
him.     I  shall  tie  up  with  Major  Donovan." 

The  next  day  was  Sunday.  It  was  the  first  day  the 
whole  regiment  was  in  one  place  since  we  left  Camp  Mills. 
There  was  a  beautiful  church  in  the  town  and  I  announced 
four  masses  with  general  absolution  and  communion  with- 
out fasting.  In  all  my  life  I  never  saw  so  many  men  at 
communion  in  one  day.  The  altar  rail  was  too  narrow^  to 
accommodate  them,  so  we  lined  them  up  on  their  knees 
the  length  of  the  aisle,  and  two  priests  were  kept  busy 
passing  up  and  down  giving  communion.     The  non-Cath- 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  147 

olics  we  took  in  groups  near  their  companies  and  had  brief 
exhortation  and  silent  prayer. 

I  never  use  the  motive  of  fear  in  talking  to  soldiers  about 
religion  because  it  does  not  suit  with  their  condition,  and 
an}^'ay  I  can  get  more  substantial  results  without  it.  But 
the  government  and  the  army  believes  in  preparedness  for 
death,  as  is  shown  by  their  ambulances  and  hospitals  and 
pensions.  I  believe  in  spiritual  preparedness ;  so  too,  do  the 
men.  I  am  happy  to  think  that  my  own  charges  are  well 
prepared.  May  the  grace  of  God  be  about  them,,  for  I  feel 
we  are  in  for  a  big  fight. 

One  thing  sure,  they  are  not  afraid  of  it.  Coming  in  to 
Vadenay  I  saw  Amos  Dow,  a  stripling  youth  of  Company 
K,  just  back  from  the  hospital  after  four  months  of  a1> 
sence — he  was  terribly  gassed  last  March  and  his  condi- 
tion then  had  me  much  worried.  He  was  still  looking  none 
too  well, 

"What  brought  you  back,"  I  asked.  "You  are  not  fit 
for  this  kind  of  work  yet." 

"Well,  they  did  offer  me  other  jobs,  but  I  wanted  to  be 
with  my  own  outfit,  and  I  wanted  to  get  a  Dutchman  after 
what  they  did  to  me,  and  I  was  sick  of  hearing  the  Marines 
talk  about  how  good  they  are.  I  want  to  get  into  a  first 
class  battle  with  this  Division  like  you've  been  through 
while  I  was  coming  up,  and  when  I  meet  those  birds  from 
the  Marines,  I'll  have  something  to  say  to  them." 

"You're  a  blood-thirsty  youth.  But  far  be  it  from  me  to 
stop  you.  It's  your  trade.  But  you  can't  carry  a  pack,  so 
I'll  fix  it  up  to  make  it  easy  for  you." 

"Joe,"  I  called  to  Sergeant  Flannery,  "I  want  you  to  get 
Captain  Mangan  and  Lieutenant  Kinney  to  adopt  this 
savage  child  in  the  Supply  Company  for  a  week  or  two. 
See  that  he  gets  up  where  he  can  smell  powder,  but  without 
too  much  hiking,  and  then  give  him  his  belt  and  rifle  and 
let  him  go  to  it." 

"I  had  better  get  a  lariat  and  a  picket  pin  and  tie  him 
up,"  growled  Joe. 


148        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

He  was  right.  By  morning  tlie  lad  was  gone  off  with 
Company  K.  He  was  afraid  I  would  spoil  his  chance  for  a 
battle. 

The  survivors  of  our  2nd  Battalion  are  camped  in  a 
wooded  island  in  the  stream  and  I  spent  the  afternoon  with 
them.  The  weather  was  delightful  and  they  were  enjoying 
a  lounging,  lazy,  gossipy  day,  which  is  the  one  compensa- 
tion for  being  in  the  Infantry — the  artillery  have  fewer 
killed,  but  their  work  never  lets  up.  I  went  amongst  them 
to  pick  up  incidents  for  my  narrative.  One  of  the  first 
things  I  found  was  that  the  recent  battle  had  given  them  in- 
creased confidence  and  respect  for  their  officers.  A  Com- 
pany F  man  said  to  me:  "I'll  take  back  anything  I  ever 
said  about  Captain  Mike.  At  Baccarat  he  had  me  fined  two- 
thirds  of  three  months  pay  for  taking  a  drink  too  much 
and  I  said  that  if  I  had  the  job  of  rigging  him  up  for  a 
night  patrol,  I'd  like  to  tie  bells  around  him  and  put  a  lan- 
tern on  his  head." 

My  first  visit  was  to  Company  H,  which  had  been  the 
greatest  sufferer.  In  addition  to  the  names  I  have  already 
cited,  one  of  the  most  frequent  on  all  men's  lips  was  that  of 
Dudley  Winthrop.  Dudley  is  a  fine  youth  and  one  of  my 
best  friends.  I  tell  him  that  he  has  a  name  like  a  movie 
actor,  but  he  says  he  can  bring  around  two  cousins  of  his 
named  Connelly  from  Company  G  to  prove  that  he  belongs 
to  the  Fighting  Race.  I  hope  he  gets  the  Croix  de  Guerre 
he  has  been  put  in  for,  for  he  certainly  deserves  it.  Patrick 
J.  Dwyer,  William  Gordon  and  Daniel  Marshall  are  also 
cited  by  their  fellows  for  sticking  it  out  while  wounded, 
with  Thomas  McDermott,  who  was  tagged  for  the  hospitajl 
and  refused  to  go.  High  praise  also  for  Martin  Higgins  (a 
bom  fighter)  and  Andrew  Murray,  Dan  McCarthy,  Ser- 
geant A^al.  Dowling,  William  Smythe,  Sammy  Kleinberg, 
whom  I  saw  going  around  all  week  cheerfully  carrying 
the  wounded  with  the  clothes  burned  off  his  back  by  a  mis- 
directed flare;  Tom  Heaney,  Robert  Cooper,  Michael 
Kearns,  James  O'Brien,  John  Thornton,  John  A.   Fred- 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  149 

ericks,  Donald  Gillespie,  John  F.  Lynch,  Joseph  Mattiello, 
with  cooks  Pat  Fahey  and  Gorman,  Timothy  Walsh,  Peter 
Breslin,  John  J.  Walker,  Charles  Rogan,  Michael  Higgins, 
Dennis  Kerrigan,  James  Giickian,  John  J.  McCormack, 
James  Todd,  John  Kelly,  h>ank  Garvin,  Lawrence  Far- 
rell,  Bill  Fleming,  Charles  Klika,  William  McNamee,  James 
Merrigan,  John  Maher,  Harold  Avery,  Patrick  Connors, 
John  P.  Furey,  Frank  Condit,  Robert  McGuiness,  John 
Lliggins,  James  Keane,  Patrick  Travers,  Thomas  Slevin, 
John  Ryan,  John  and  James  French,  Bruno  Guenther,  Dan- 
iel Dayton,  Frank  Doran,  Charles  Ziegler.  The  men  who 
were  on  the  digging  detail  that  had  such  heavy  loss-^s  in  the 
bombardment  praise  the  coolness  and  solicitude  for  their 
safety  of  Lieutenants  Becker  and  Otto. 

Company  G  talked  most  about  their  Captain,  the  serenest 
pleasantest,  and  most  assuring  person  in  the  world  in  time 
of  trial  and  danger.  Also  Lieutenants  Ogle  and  Stout, 
Norris  and  Joseph  Boag,  who  was  wounded  in  the  fray. 
I  myself  had  seen  Carl  Kemp  of  the  same  Company  on 
duty  at  Battalion  Headquarters  standing  through  the  bom- 
bardment on  the  top  of  the  parapet  on  his  duties  as  look- 
out. Sergeant  Jim  Coffey,  wounded  and  still  fighting ;  and, 
in  the  same  class,  Ralph  Holmes  and  John  Flanigan ;  James 
Christy,  working  his  automatic  from  the  top  of  the 
trench;  Dennis  Roe,  always  a  good  soldier  in  a  fight; 
Sylvester  Taylor  and  Joseph  Holland,  liaison  men; 
Sergeants  Jim  Murray,  Edward  McNamara,  Thomas  T. 
Williamson  and  Frank  Bull,  Mess  Sergeant  Hugh  Lee; 
James  Henderson,  Thomas  Gallagher,  William  McManus, 
Michael  Hogan,  William  Carroll,  Morris  Lemkin,  Dennis 
O'Connor,  John  McNamara,  John  Conroy.  Frank  ^McNiff, 
Joseph  P.  Alnwick,  Patrick  Burke,  Patrick  Duffy,  David 
Fitzgibbons,  Angelo  Dambrosio,  James  Keavey,  Nicholas 
Martone,  Lawrence  Redmond,  James  Ryan  and  John  Ryan, 
the  Hans  brothers;  Thomas  Slevin,  Herbert  Slade.  James 
Walsh,  Allen,  Henry  Curry  and  John  Fay  as  Company 
liaison ;  Arthur  Ayres,  George  Murray,  Herman  and  Lyons 


150  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

as  litterbearers ;  Louis  Mugno,  Maurice  Dwyer,  Patrick 
Keane,  Charles  McKenna,  James  Elliott,  mechanics;  Mich- 
ael Hogan,  Patrick  Burke,  young  O'Keefe,  Robert  Mona- 
han,  Frank  Garland;  and,  to  end  with  a  good  old  Irish 
name,  Mack  Rosensweig.  I  know  he'll  be  with  us  if  we 
ever  get  a  chance  to  go  over  and  free  Ireland,  and  he'll 
be  a  good  man  to  take  along. 

In  Company  F  it  was  all  praise  for  Captain  Mike  and 
praise  and  regrets  for  Lieutenant  Young.  I  did  not  need 
to  have  them  tell  me  anything  about  their  liaison  group, 
as  I  saw  them  at  work — from  the  Corporal  in  charge,  John 
H.  Cooice,  who,  though  wounded,  stuck  at  his  job,  to  Harry 
P.  Ross,  John  J.  Carey,  Leon  Duane,  John  Gill,  William 
Crimson,  Harry  IMcLean.  Sergeant  Major  Michael  J. 
Bowler  did  good  work  looking  after  the  wounded.  Tom 
Kenney  carried  in  Lieutenant  Anderson  and  I  saw  James 
Bevan  do  good  service  in  the  same  line ;  also  Marquardt, 
Coble,  Gray  and  Harry  Rubin.  First  Sergeant  Joseph 
Blake  was  a  cool  leader,  as  also  Charles  Denon,  Leo  Mc- 
Laughlin, and  Tim  McCrohan.  Of  those  who  were 
wounded  and  stuck,  the  name  of  Sergeant  Eugene  Cunning- 
ham was  mentioned,  as  also  John  Butler,  Edward  Callan, 
John  Catterson,  Albert  Curtis  and  James  Brennan.  Pat 
Frawley  (one  of  the  best  soldiers  the  regiment  ever  had), 
was  wounded  and  stuck,  was  knocked  senseless  and  still 
stuck.  Others  who  distinguished  themselves  in  hand  to 
hand  fighting  were  Patrick  McGinley,  Peter  Sarosy,  Thomas 
McManus,  Malcolm  Joy,  always  lively  in  a  fight;  and  on 
the  Roll,  of  Honor  the  popular  vote  placed  Sergeant  Phil 
Gargan,  whose  kitchen  was  ruined  ("wounded  at  Luneville, 
killed  in  Champagne,"  said  Phil)  ;  James  P.  McGuinn,  Os- 
car Youngberg,  William  Gracely,  Hugh  Haggerty,  Lewis 
Edwards,  Michael  Gettings,  Joseph  McCarthy,  John  J.  Ty- 
son, James  Moran,  Edward  Moore,  James  Kelly,  Cornelius 
Behan,  Ned  Boone,  James  Branigan,  Tom  Cahill,  James 
Coogan,  Joseph  Coxe,  Morris  Fine,  Dick  Leahy,  Nat  Rouse, 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  161 

and,  to  end  once  more  with  a  good  Irish  name,  "Pat" 
Levine. 

Company  E  added  to  my  extended  list  the  names  of 
James  A.  Donohue,  Walter  Dowling,  Ray  Dineen,  and 
most  of  all,  Fred  Gliick,  who  rendered  heroic  service  as  lit- 
ter bearer.  At  Headquarters  the  Colonel  himself  spoke  en- 
thusiastically about  the  good  work  of  young  Joe  Hennessy, 
who  was  on  the  road  at  all  times  on  his  motorcycle,  oblivi- 
ous of  danger  even  after  being  wounded.  I  found  that 
Company  M  was  carrying  Corporal  Dan  Flynn  as  A.  W. 
O.  L.  on  its  records.  Dan  had  gone  up  to  the  Second  Bat- 
talion on  paper  work  and  finding  that  a  fight  was  on  he  got 
himself  a  rifle  and  stayed  there  till  it  was  over. 

We  are  all  well  satisfied  with  the  spirit  of  every  man  in 
the  regiment  during  the  last  fight.  I  had  but  one  recom- 
mendation to  make  to  Colonel  McCoy,  The  Company  litter 
bearers  are  left  to  the  selection  of  the  Captains.  Now  the 
Captains  are  chiefly  interested  in  front  line  work  and  they 
refuse  to  spare  a  good  rifleman  for  any  other  task.  But 
the  litter  bearers  have  a  task  which  is  most  trying  on 
morale  and  physique,  and  it  will  not  be  easier  if  it  comes  to 
open  warfare,  where  they  will  have  to  stand  up  when  the 
fighting  men  lie  in  shell  holes.  The  litter  bearers  acquitted 
themselves  well  in  this  fight,  but  I  feel  strongly  that  noth- 
ing is  too  good  for  the  wounded.  I  want  the  Colonel  to 
insist  that  one  man  in  every  four  be  a  picked  man  who 
will  go  and  keep  the  others  going  on  their  work  of  human 
salvage  until  every  man  drops  in  his  tracks.  I  would  select 
in  every  four  men  one  of  our  solid  Irish,  of  the  kind  that 
with  death  all  around,  hears  nothing  but  the  grace  of  God 
purring  in  his  heart. 


CHAMIGNY  SUR  MARNE 

July  24th,  1918 

Sur   Mame — there   is    magic   in   that.      I   have   always 
wanted  to  see  the  Old  Regiment  add  the  name  of  that  river, 


152        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

so  full  of  martial  associations,  to  the  history-telling  silver 
furls  on  its  colors.  We  are  not  in  battle  yet.  Nothing 
could  be  more  peaceful  than  the  scenes  in  which  we  live, 
if  one  shuts  one's  eyes  to  uniforms  and  weapons.  The 
broad,  silvery  Marne  forms  a  loop  around  the  little  village 
and  the  commodious  modern  chateau  (owned,  by  the  way, 
by  an  American),  in  which  we  live.  We  revel  in  our  new 
found  luxury.  Following  a  motto  of  this  land,  "We  take 
our  good  where  we  find  it."  I  got  a  variation  of  that  as  I 
came  into  the  lordly  halls  and  stood  staring  around  me. 
Sergeant  Major  Dan  O'Connell  gave  a  signal  like  an  Or- 
chestra Leader  to  the  Adjutant's  Office  Force  and  McDer- 
mott,  O'Brien,  Jimmy  Canny,  White,  Monahan,  Farrell, 
\Miitty,  with  Dedecker  and  Dietz  joining  in,  sang  deliber- 
ately for  my  benefit,  "There's  nothing  too  good  for  the 
I-i-i-rish."  A  sentiment  which  meets  with  my  hearty  ap- 
proval. 

A  diary  is  a  sort  of  magic  carpet;  it  is  here,  and  then  it 
is  there.  Three  days  ago  we  hiked  it  from  Vadenay  to  the 
nearby  station  of  St.  Hilaire-au-Temple  where  we  entrained 
for  parts  to  us  unknown.  Our  2nd  Battalion  and  the  Wis- 
consins,  w^hich  formed  one  of  the  sections,  had  the  mean 
end  of  a  one-sided  battle  while  waiting  at  the  station.  The 
German  bombing  planes  came  over  and  started  dropping 
their  "Devil's  eggs."  C-r-r-unch!  C-r-r-unch!  C-r-r-unch! 
the  face  of  the  earth  was  punctured  with  deep  holes  that 
sent  up  rocks  and  smoke  like  a  volcano  in  eruption;  the 
freight  shed  was  sent  in  flying  flinders,  but  the  train  was 
untouched.    Animals  were  killed,  but  no  men. 

"We  don't  know  where  we're  going  but  we're  on  our 
way"  might  be  taken  as  the  traveling  song  of  soldiers. 
We  dropped  down  to  Chalons,  crossed  the  river,  going  first 
in  a  south-easterly  direction  to  St.  Dizier,  then  southwest  to 
Troyes,  and  rolling  through  France  the  whole  night  long 
we  came  in  the  morning  as  near  Paris  as  Noisy-le-Sec,  from 
which,  with  glasses,  we  could  see  the  Eiffel  Tower.    Judg- 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  153 

ing  from  our  experience  with  the  elusive  furlough,  that  is 
as  near  to  Paris  as  most  of  us  will  ever  get. 

We  were  impressed  with  the  new  enthusiasm  for  Amer- 
ican soldiers  among  the  French  people;  every  station,  every 
village,  every  farm  window  was  hung  with  colors,  some 
attempt  at  the  Stars  and  Stripes  being  common.  And  stout 
burghers,  lovely  maidens,  saucy  gamins,  and  old  roadmen- 
ders  had  a  cheer  and  a  wave  of  the  hand  for  "les  braves 
Americains,  si  jeunes,  si  forts,  si  gentils,"  as  the  troop 
train  passed  by. 

"Looks  as  if  they  knew  about  the  big  battle  we  were  in," 
said  Lawrence  Reilly. 

"Not  a  bit  of  it,"  said  the  grizzled  Sergeant  Harvey.  "I 
have  seen  the  Paris  papers  and  nobody  but  ourselves  knows 
that  the  Americans  were  in  the  Champagne  fight.  These 
people  think  we  are  fresh  from  the  rear,  and  they  are  giving 
us  a  good  reception  on  account  of  the  American  Divisions 
that  hammered  the  Jerries  three  or  four  days  after  we 
helped  to  stand  them  up.     Isn't  that  so,  Father  ?" 

"I  think  you're  right.  Sergeant.  For  the  time  being  what 
you  fellows  did  is  lost  in  the  shuffle." 

"Who  were  these  other  guys  ?"  asked  Mike  Molese. 

"They  say  it  was  the  ist  and  2nd  Divisions  up  near 
Soissons  and  the  26th  and  3rd  around  Chateau  Thierry." 

"How  is  it  these  fellows  manage  to  get  all  the  press- 
agent  stuff  and  never  a  thing  in  the  paper  about  the  42nd  ?" 
asked  Tommy  Murphy. 

"Well,  those  other  fellows  say  that  it  is  the  Rainbows 
that  get  all  the  advertising." 

"Well,  if  I  ever  get  home,"  said  Bobby  Harrison,  "I'll 
tell  the  world  that  none  of  those  birds,  regulars,  marines 
or  Yankees,  have  anything  on  the  Rainbow." 

"Oh,  what's  the  difference?"  said  the  philosophical  John 
Mahon,  "as  long  as  it  is  American  soldiers  that  are  getting 
the  credit." 

"Do  you  subscribe  to  those  sentiments,  Kenneth?"  I 
asked  John's  side  partner,  Hayes. 


164)  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

"I  certainly  do,  Father." 

**Then  I  make  it  unanimous.  This  meeting-  will  now 
adjourn  with  all  present  rising  to  sing  the  'Star  Spangled 
Banner.'  " 

CHATEAU  MOUCHETON,  EPIEDS 

July  26th,  19 1 8 
Somebody  is  always  taking  the  joy  out  of  life.  We  had 
but  three  days  in  our  pleasant  villages  on  the  Marne  when 
they  routed  us  out  and  lined  us  up  on  a  hot,  broad  highway, 
where  we  waited  for  the  French  camions  which  were  to 
take  us  towards  the  field  of  battle.  Finally  they  arrived — 
a  long  fleet  of  light  hooded  trucks,  each  driven  by  a  little 
sun-burned,  almond-eyed,  square-cheeked  Chink — Anna- 
mese  or  Tonquinese,  to  be  more  accurate.  We  sailed  in 
these  four-wheeled  convoys  past  what  is  left  of  the  village 
of  Vaux  (the  completest  job  of  destruction  we  had  yet 
seen,  the  work  of  our  American  artillery)  through  Chateau 
Thierry,  which  had  only  been  pecked  at  in  comparison,  and 
northwest  to  the  town  of  Epieds. 

Here  we  witnessed  one  of  those  melodramas  of  war, 
for  the  sight  of  which  most  civilians  at  home  would  sell,  I 
am  sure,  one  year  of  their  lives.  There  were  four  of  our 
observation  balloons  in  the  air.  Four  or  five  German  at- 
tacking planes  were  circling  above  them  intent  on  their 
destruction ;  and  a  few  doughty  French  flyers  were  manceuv- 
ering  to  resist  them.  The  convoy  paused  on  the  road  to 
watch  the  result  of  the  combat.  In  fact,  all  the  roads  con- 
verging there  were  brown  with  canvas  hoods  and  khaki 
uniforms.  Both  the  stage  and  the  accommodations  for 
spectators  were  perfect.  The  spectators  arranged  them- 
selves along  the  roadside ;  the  scene  was  set  in  the  clear  sky 
overhead.  Suddenly  one  of  the  Germans  darted  high  in  the 
air  over  the  balloon  on  the  extreme  left.  Anti-aircraft  guns 
barked  viciously,  and  the  ether  broke  out  in  white  and  black 
patches  around  him,  but  he  managed  to  place  himself  where 
they  could  not  fire  at  him  easily,  as  he  had  the  balloon  in 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  155 

the  line  of  fire  from  the  strongest  battery.  Then  he  turned 
and  swooped  down  on  the  balloon,  swift  as  a  hawk  at  its 
prey.  He  swerved  upwards  as  he  passed  it  and  all  four 
Germans  soared  rapidly  upwards  and  away.  We  saw 
sometliing  drop  suddenly  from  the  balloon,  which  rapidly 
developed  into  a  parachute  with  two  observers  clinging  to 
it.  A  thin  wisp  of  smoke  which  we  could  detect  from  the 
balloon  then  burst  into  flames,  and  the  blazing  material  be- 
gan to  drop  towards  the  parachute.  But  the  automobile  to 
which  the  silk  observation  tower  was  attached  began  to 
move,  and  the  fiery  mass  missed  the  parachute  on  the  way 
down.  We  were  glad  that  the  observers  had  escaped,  but 
we  felt  that  in  this  first  round  of  our  new  battle  we  had  to 
concede  first  blood  to  the  enemy. 

We  hiked  from  Epieds — a  pleasant  walk — to  this  fine 
chateau,  the  main  building  of  which  is  occupied  by  French 
StafiF  Officers  of  a  Corps  d'Armee.  Our  headquarters  is  in 
a  large  outbuilding,  the  men  being  in  the  nearby  woods.  I 
have  been  circulating  around  amongst  our  ist  Battalion  and 
also  the  Ohios  on  my  own  particular  concerns.  Took  sup- 
per with  Company  D,  Buck  is  away,  as  Major  Donovan 
has  taken  his  four  company  commanders  on  a  reconnoiter- 
ing  expedition,  since  his  battalion  is  to  be  first  in.  Had  sup- 
per with  Lieutenants  Connelly,  Daly  and  Burke.  Daly  is  a 
fine,  intelligent  active  youth,  graduate  of  Holy  Cross  and  of 
the  Old  Irish  9th  Mass.  Burke  got  his  training  in  the  regu- 
lar army.  He  is  a  soldier  of  the  silent  determined  kind, 
and  a  very  efficient  officer,  with  no  blamed  nonsense  about 
him.  The  other  three  of  us,  of  a  more  normal  racial  type, 
cannot  see  any  sense  in  being  too  sensible.  Connelly  winked 
at  me  and  began  to  "draw"  Burke  by  expressing  envy  of  the 
lucky  birds  who  had  gotten  orders  to  go  back  to  the  States. 
Daly  played  up  strongly,  and  Burke's  face  showed  ever- 
increasing  exasperation  and  disgust.  Finally  he  blurted : 
"Father,  why  don't  you  shut  these  slackers  up  ?  We're  here 
to  see  this  thing  through,  and  such  talk  is  bad  for  morale." 
When  I  laughed  as  loud  as  the  rest  he  grinned  and  said: 


156  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

"Oh,  I  know  that  if  they  gave  you  fellows  New  York  City 
with  Boston  to  boot,  neither  of  you  would  go  back."  A 
true  statement,  as  I  know.  I  paid  for  my  supper  by  hear- 
ing their  confessions. 

Later 

The  reconnoitering  party  came  in  for  a  severe  shelling, 
and  Buck  has  gone  back  wounded  and  Hutchinson  gassed. 
Donovan  is  back  here,  also  gassed,  but  ready  to  go  in  again 
if  they  want  his  battalion,  though  his  orders  to  relieve  the 
French  have  been  countermanded.  While  I  am  writing, 
a  polite  French  Staff  Officer  came  in  with  the  word  that 
the  original  orders  should  stand.  Donovan  buckled  his 
harness  on  anew  and  went  out  to  lead  his  battalion  forward 
once  more.  I  posted  myself  in  the  gateway  of  the  Chateau 
and  gave  absolution  to  each  Company  as  it  passed.  Then 
I  hastened  out  on  the  main  road,  and  made  similar  an- 
nouncements to  the  Ohios,  as  that  regiment  moved  up  to 
the  front.  There  is  every  evidence  that  we  are  in  for  a 
battle,  big  and  bloody. 

COURPOIL 

July  27th,  1918 

We  spent  last  night  in  this  shell-torn  town,  and  this 
evening  we  take  up  the  pursuit  of  the  withdrawing  Ger- 
mans. Donovan's  battalion  is  out  getting  touch  with  them 
and  McKenna  is  starting  up  too.  The  84th  Brigade  has 
already  relieved  the  26th  American  Division  and  a  Brigade 
of  the  28th  and  have  been  in  a  hard  battle  with  the  enemy 
at  Croix  Rouge  Farm.  It  took  all  their  undoubted  courage 
to  sweep  over  the  machine  gun  nests,  and  they  succeeded 
in  doing  it  at  the  price  of  a  battalion.  The  roads  coming 
down  are  filled  with  ambulances  and  trucks  carrying  the 
wounded  and  dripping  blood.  W^e  are  relieving  the  167th 
French  Division,  but  nothing  seems  definitely  settled,  and 
messengers  are  coming  and  going  with  orders  and  counter 
orders.  I  have  greater  admiration  than  ever  for  McCoy 
these  days.    He  moves  in  war  as  in  his  native  element,  ex- 


THE  CHAMPAGNE  DEFENSIVE  157 

pending  his  energies  without  lost  motion  or  useless  fric- 
tion. 

Tonight  we  go  to  the  Chateau  de  Fere.  If  the  Ger- 
mans decide  to  make  a  stand  at  the  Ourcq  we  shall  be  in 
action  by  tomorrow. 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCO 

Croix  Rouge  Farm  was  the  last  stand  of  the  Germans 
south  of  the  Otircq  but  it  was  expected  that  they  would 
make  some  sort  of  resistance  on  the  slopes  and  in  the  woods 
north  of  this  river. 

To  get  to  the  battlefield  from  the  south  one  can  go  on  a 
broad  highway  running  straight  north  for  five  miles 
through  the  thickly  wooded  Foret  de  Fere.  Near  the  north- 
ern point  of  the  woods  is  an  old  square  French  Ferme — the 
Ferme  de  I'Esperance,-  and  a  more  pretentious  modem 
dwelling,  the  Chateau  de  Foret.  A  little  further  north  one 
comes  to  the  contiguous  villages  of  La  Folie  and  Villers 
sur  Fere.  On  the  map  they  look  like  a  thin  curved  caterpil- 
lar, with  the  church  and  the  buildings  around  its  square  rep- 
resenting the  head.  Beyond  the  square  a  short  curved 
street  known  to  us  as  "Dead  Man's  Cur^^e"  or  "Hell's  Cor- 
ner" leads  to  the  cemetery  on  the  left,  with  an  orchard  on 
the  right.  From  the  wall  of  the  orchard  or  cemetery  one 
can  see  the  whole  battlefield  of  our  Division  on  the  Ourcq. 
A  mile  and  a  half  to  the  left  across  the  narrow  river  is 
Fere  en  Tardenois  blazing,  smoking  and  crackling  all  the 
week  under  the  fire  of  artillery,  first  of  the  French,  then 
of  the  Germans.  About  the  same  distance  to  the  right  and 
also  north  of  the  river,  lies  the  village  of  Sergy  where  the 
lowas  were  to  have  their  battle.  To  get  the  Ourcq  straight 
across  the  line  of  vision  one  faces  to  the  northeast.  The 
eye  traverses  a  downward  slope  with  a  few  clumps  of  trees 
for  about  eight  hundred  yards.  The  river,  which  would  be 
called  a  creek  in  our  countr}%  has  a  small  bridge  to  the  left 

158 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  159 

and  another  a  llule  to  the  right  as  we  are  looking,  near  the 
Green  Mill  or  Moulin  Vert.  Straight  ahead  beyond  the 
river  is  a  valley,  and  up  the  valley  a  thousand  yards  north 
of  the  river  is  a  house  and  outbuildings  with  connecting 
walls  all  of  stone,  forming  a  large  interior  court  yard. 
It  is  Meurcy  Farm.  A  brook  three  or  four  feet  wide  runs 
down  the  valle}'-  towards  us.  Its  marshy  ground  is  thickly 
wooded  near  the  Ourcq  with  patches  of  underbrush.  And 
about  two  hundred  yards  west  of  the  Farm  is  a  thick  square 
patch  of  wood,  the  Bois  Colas.  North  of  the  Farm  is  a 
smaller  woods,  the  Bois  Brule. 

The  whole  terrain  naturally  slopes  towards  the  Ourcq. 
But  tactically  the  slopes  that  were  of  most  importance  in. 
our  battle  were  those  that  bound  the  brook  and  its  valley. 
Facing  the  Farm  from  the  bottom  of  the  valley  one  sees 
to  the  left  a  gradual  hill  rising  northwestwards  till  it 
reaches  the  village  of  Seringes  et  Nesles,  which  lies  like 
an  inbent  fish-hook,  curving  around  Bois  Colas  and  Meur- 
cy Farm  half  a  mile  away.  To  the  east  of  the  brook  the 
rise  goes  up  from  the  angle  of  the  brook  valley  and  the 
river  valley  in  two  distinct  slopes,  the  first,  fairly  sharp, 
the  second  gradual.  Six  hundred  yards  or  so  north  of 
these  crests  is  a  thick,  green  wall  across  the  northern  view. 
It  is  the  Forest  of  Nesles.  The  difficulty  of  attacking  up 
this  little  valley  towards  the  Farm  lay  in  the  fact  that  it 
made  a  sort  of  trough,  both  sides  of  which  could  be  easily 
defended  by  machine  guns  with  a  fine  field  of  direct  fire,  and 
also  by  flanking  fire  from  the  opposite  slope  as  well  as  from 
Meurcy  Farm  and  Bois  Colas  which  lay  in  the  northern 
angle  of  the  valley.  And  when  the  attackers  got  to  the  top 
of  the  eastern  crest  there  were  five  hundred  yards  of  level 
ground  to  traverse  in  face  of  whatever  defences  might  be 
on  the  edge  of  the  Forest. 

With  plenty  of  artillery  to  crack  the  hardest  nuts,  and 
with  regiments  moving  forward  fairly  well  in  line  so  that 
the  advance  of  each  would  protect  the  flanks  of  its  neigh- 
bors, the  problem  would  not  have  been  a  terrific  one. 


160  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

But  nobody  knew  for  certain  whether  the  enemy  would 
make  more  than  a  rear  guard  action  at  the  Ourcq.  His 
general  line  still  constituted  a  salient  and  his  ultimate  line 
was  sure  to  be  the  Vesle  or  the  Aisnet  It  takes  time  to 
get  Artillery  up  and  in  place.  And  the  Germans  might  slip 
away  scot  free  on  account  of  our  too  great  caution  in  fol- 
lowing him.  Miles  to  right  and  left  allied  troops,  mainly 
French,  were  hammering  at  both  sides  of  the  salient.  It 
was  the  duty  of  tliose  who  followed  the  retreating  enemy 
to  see  that  his  retirement  with  guns  and  other  property 
should  not  be  too  easy  a  task. 

In  our  progress  to  the  slopes  above  the  Ourcq  there  was 
little  resistance  in  the  path  of  our  brigade.  The  night  of 
the  27th,  General  Lenihan  established  brigade  headquar- 
ters at  the  Qiateau  de  Foret.  The  Ohios  were  in  the  for- 
est in  brigade  support,  as  the  first  plan  was  to  send  in  one 
regiment.  Our  second  battalion  was  in  regimental  reserve 
and  was  held  by  Anderson  in  the  woods  to  the  left  of  the 
road,  his  principal  officers  being  Lieutenant  Keveny,  Adju- 
tant, and  in  command  of  the  four  companies,  E,  F,  G,  H, 
Captains  Baker,  Kelly,  Prout  and  Finn.  Colonel  McCoy 
had  established  his  post  of  command  near  the  church  at 
the  northern  end  of  Villers  sur  Fere.  With  him  was  the 
Headquarters  Company  under  Captain  Michael  Walsh,  and 
nearest  to  him  was  the  third  battalion  under  Major  Mc- 
Kenna,  with  Lieutenant  Cassidy,  Adjutant,  and  Companies 
I,  K,  L,  M,  commanded  by  Captains  Ryan,  Hurley,  Merle- 
Smith  and  Meaney. 

Major  Donovan  with  the  first  battalion.  Lieutenant 
Ames,  Adjutant,  and  the  Companies  A,  B,  C,  D,  command- 
ed by  Lieutenant  Baldwin,  Captain  Reilly,  Captain  Bootz 
and  Lieutenant  Connelly  with  our  Machine  Gun  Company 
under  Captain  Seibert,  had  gone  forward  on  the  night  of 
the  26th  and  relieved  the  French  west  of  Beuvardes.  On 
the  afternoon  of  the  27th  they  had  passed  east  through  the 
Foret  de  Fere  and  had  come  out  on  the  crest  over  the  river 
between  Villers   and    Sergy,   the   lines   being   widely   ex- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  161 

tended  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  lowas  on  the  right.  Here 
we  witnessed  the  first  operation  of  cavalry  in  our  battles. 
A  small  squadron  of  French  cavalry  came  out  of  the  woods 
and  proceeded  down  the  road  south  of  the  river  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Sergy  with  the  intention  of  drawing  the  enemy  fire. 
It  was  a  beautiful  sight  to  see  the  animated  group  of  horses 
and  men  tearing  down  the  road,  but  a  spectacle  that  did  not 
last  long,  as  very  shortly  they  drew  a  powerful  enemy  fire 
and  after  some  losses  cantered  back  to  the  woods  with  their 
main  object  accomplished.  Our  Infantry  was  thus  drawn 
into  the  battle  but  with  little  opportunity  to  accomplish  mucli 
as  the  enemy  were  relying  principally  on  heavy  shell  fire. 
Of  ours,  Company  C  suffered  the  greatest  losses,  as  Cor- 
poral Morschhauser,  William  V,  Murtha  and  John  F.  In- 
gram were  killed  and  Sergeant  John  F.  Vermaelen  with 
Frank  Dunn,  William  Ryan  and  Harry  Fix  mortally 
wounded.  Major  Donovan  drew  his  battalion  back  behind 
the  reverse  slope  of  a  hill  where  it  was  protected  from  ob- 
servation by  trees,  and  there  ordered  them  to  dig  in  for  the 
night. 

He  had  detached  Company  D,  under  Lieutenant  Connelly, 
to  find  and  maintain  liaison  with  the  French  on  the  left. 
The  Lieutenant  got  in  touch  with  our  own  3rd  Battalion 
which  was  already  coming  up  on  that  side.  Lieutenant 
Burke  of  D  Company,  with  Eugene  Brady,  kept  on  to  find 
the  French  to  the  westward,  but  just  as  he  started  out 
he  received  a  dangerous  and  painful  wound  in  the  leg.  He 
stopped  only  long  enough  to  have  it  tied  up  and  then,  in 
spite  of  protest,  he  insisted  on  carrying  out  his  task.  He 
tramped  over  fields  and  through  woods  for  four  hours  that 
night  before  his  work  was  complete  and  there  was  no  danger 
of  the  derangement  of  plans,  and  then  permitted  them  to 
carry  him  back  to  the  hospital.  His  wound  was  so  severe 
that  it  took  months  and  months  to  heal,  but  Burke  is  the 
kind  of  soldier  who  will  carry  out  any  task  he  is  given  to  do, 
if  he  has  to  finish  it  crawling. 

In  the  early  hours  of  Sunday,  July  28th,  the  disposition  of 


1(5«  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

the  regiment  was  as  follows.  Colonel  McCoy  witli  his 
Headquarters  Company,  Major  McKenna's  Battalion  with 
Company  D  of  the  ist  Battalion,  and  a  Company  of  the 
Wisconsin  Machine  Gunners  were  in  the  town  of  Villers 
sur  Fere  and  in  the  orchards  east  of  it.  Major  Donovan 
with  Companies  A,  B  and  C,  and  our  Machine  Gun  Com- 
pany were  further  east  in  the  direction  of  Sergy.  Our 
2nd  Battalion  was  two  miles  behind  and  to  the  west,  the 
Ohios  being  still  further  west  on  the  same  line.  A  bat- 
talion of  the  Alabamas  had  come  up  behind  Major  Dono- 
van to  take  the  ground  he  had  occupied  between  Villers 
sur  Fere  and  Sergy.  In  front  of  Sergy  the  lowas  were 
already  set.  West  of  Villers  sur  Fere  the  ground  was  held 
by  the  French,  their  main  effort  being  concentrated  on  the 
capture  of  Fere  en  Tardenois.  It  was  reported  through  the 
night  that  they  already  had  that  town,  but  they  did  not 
cross  the  river  until  well  on  into  the  next  morning. 

Under  normal  battle  conditions  Colonel  McCoy  would  not 
have  been  justified  in  having  his  Post  of  Command  right  up 
with  the  advance  elements  of  his  regiment  as  they  went  into 
battle.  But  he  was  a  bold  as  well  as  a  careful  commander, 
and  he  felt  that  he  could  best  handle  the  situation  by  being 
where  he  could  see  just  what  was  going  on. 

For  two  days  the  situation  had  been  changing  from  hour 
to  hour.  First  it  w^as  planned  to  have  Major  Donovan  re- 
lieve the  forward  elements  of  the  French  Infantry  on  Fri- 
day night.  Then  on  Friday  morning  came  a  corps  order  for 
the  42nd  Division  to  attack  on  Saturday  morning.  It  was 
then  arranged  between  General  Menoher  and  the  French 
Division  Commander  to  have  two  battalions  of  ours,  Dono- 
van's and  McKenna's,  relieve  the  French  that  night.  As  we 
have  seen,  the  order  to  attack  was  recalled  and  the  relieving 
battalions  were  sent  back.  But  the  two  division  comman- 
ders decided  that  the  relief  should  be  effected  and  that 
these  two  battalions  should  take  the  front  line  with  Ander- 
son in  support  and  the  i66th  in  reserve.  On  Saturday  came 
word  that  the  enemy  had  withdrawn  with  the  French  Divi- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  163 

sion  to  our  left  in  pursuit.  The  i66th  were  to  relieve  them 
when  the  situation  settled. 

On  Saturday  morning  came  General  Order  51.  "Pur- 
suant to  orders  from  the  Sixth  (French)  Army,  42nd  Divi- 
sion will  attack  at  H.  hour,  under  cover  of  darkness,  night 
of  July  27-28."  The  four  infantry  regiments  were  to  at- 
tack abreast,  a  battalion  of  each  being  in  line.  "The  attack 
will  be  in  the  nature  of  a  surprise,  and  consequently  troops 
in  the  attack  will  not  fire  during  the  assault,  but  will  confine 
themselves  to  the  use  of  the  bayonet." 

At  I  :oo  P.  M.  Saturday,  July  27th,  the  order  was  given 
to  execute  the  relief  and  await  further  instructions.  Our 
advance  elements  were  already  on  the  way  and  the  ist 
Battalion  of  the  Ohios  came  up  in  the  rear  of  the  loth 
French  Chasseurs  to  make  reconnoissance  with  the  purpose 
of  relieving  them. 

An  hour  after  midnight  General  Lenihan  received  a  mes- 
■sage  from  Colonel  Macx\rthur  containing  an  order  from  our 
1st  Army  Corps,  that  the  attack  be  made  before  daylight  and 
without  artillery  preparation,  reliance  being  placed  chiefly 
on  the  bayonet  to  drive  the  enemy  from  his  position. 
Cavalry  were  to  be  in  reserve  to  follow  up.  General  Leni- 
han ordered  all  of  our  three  Battalions  to  take  part  in  the 
attack. 

Colonel  McCoy  was  sent  for  and  the  order  was  given  him. 
Major  McKenna  expressed  his  opinion  of  the  order  in  a 
manly,  soldierly  way.  Captain  Plurley  of  Company  K  had 
felt  out  the  enemy  resistance  during  the  night  and  had 
found  machine  gun  nests  just  across  the  river,  the  enemy  ar- 
tillery also  being  very  active.  The  assumption  of  a  retreat- 
ing enemy  against  whom  infantry  bayonets  and  charging 
cavalry  could  be  effective  was  not  justified  by  what  the 
front  line  could  detect.  It  was  a  case  for  artillery  prepara- 
tion and  careful  advance.  Colonel  McCoy  was  already  of 
the  same  opinion,  which  he  expressed  with  proper  vigor. 
They  were  three  good  soldiers,  Lenihan,  McCoy  and  Mc- 
Kenna, and  they  all  felt  the  same  way  about  it.    But  it  was 


164  FATHER  DUFFY^  STORY 

a  Corps  Order,  an  Army  order,  in  fact,  commanding  a  gen- 
eral advance.  Whatever  might  be  the  cost,  it  could  not  be 
that  this  regiment  should  not  do  its  share -to  keep  the 
advancing  line  in  even  contact  with  the  enemy.  So  when  the 
hour  arrived  the  Colonel  gave  the  order  to  advance,  which 
order  was  communicated  by  Major  McKenna,  to  Hurley, 
Ryan  and  Merle-Smith,  Meaney  being  in  reserve.  Orders 
were  also  sent  to  Colonel  Donovan  on  the  right  to  move 
his  battalion  to  the  west,  taking  advantage  of  the  woods, 
and  then  to  cross  the  river.  Lieutenant  Colonel  Mitchell 
brought  orders  in  person  to  Anderson  to  bring  his  bat- 
talion forward  and  cross  the  Ourcq  on  the  left  of  McKenna, 
w^hich  would  bring  him  to  the  slope  on  the  west  of  the  little 
brook  leading  towards  Bois  Colas. 

Meanwhile  General  Lenihan  at  3  :20  A.  M.  had  received 
w^ord  from  General  Brown  of  the  84th  Brigade  that  he 
could  not  be  sure  of  having  his  regiments  in  line  in  time 
for  the  assault.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  lowas^  under 
Colonel  Tinley,  were  already  abreast  of  Donovan;  and  the 
assault  battalion  of  the  Alabamas,  under  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Baer,  was  rapidly  coming  up  behind.  About  5  :oo  A.  M. 
General  Lenihan  received  word  that  the  French  were  not  in 
Fere  en  Tardenois.  He  decided  that  it  was  too  hazard- 
ous to  push  the  attack  and  word  was  sent  at  5:15  o'clock 
to  Colonel  McCoy  to  suspend  his  advance  temporarily  pend- 
ing the  advance  of  neighboring  organizations. 

But  the  old  regiment  had  a  motto  to  live  up  to,  "Never 
disobeyed  an  order,  never  lost  a  flag."  McKenna  had  given 
his  orders  to  his  Captains  who  all  knew  just  what  it  meant 
— and  the  men  under  them  knew  it.  Many  of  them,  most  of 
them,  as  it  turned  out,  would  be  dead  or  wounded  up  that 
pleasant  little  valley  and  along  its  eastern  slopes  before  the 
sun  rode  at  mid-heavens.  But  no  man  was  daunted  by  the 
thought. 

The  first  wave  was  to  be  Company  K,  already  so  cruelly 
tried  by  the  gas  attack  at  Luneville.  Their  leader  was  Cap- 
tain John  Patrick  Hurley,  whose  slender  form  and  hand- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  165 

some  ascetic  face  seemed  to  mark  the  poet  or  the  student 
rather  than  the  soldier.  But  he  was  a  keen  soldier,  one 
whose  blood  pumped  full  and  even  when  death  was  flying 
round.  Company  K  was  willing  to  die  for  him  or  with  him 
anywhere.  At  his  command  they  moved  forward  in  ad- 
vance formation  with  intervals  all  perfect  at  a  walk,  a  trot, 
a  run,  down  to  the  Ourcq.  It  was  a  sight  to  remember 
while  life  would  last,  as  perfect  as  a  peace  manoeuvre  but 
with  death  all  around.  In  that  short  advance  Sergeant 
Frank  Doughney  and  Corporal  Raymond  Staber,  the  heroic 
son  of  Mount  Loretto,  found  their  way  to  heaven;  and  a 
number  of  good  men  were  wounded.  But  they  swept  on 
over  the  Green  Mill  bridge  and  across  its  dam  and  through 
the  waters  of  the  river  with  Captain  Hurley  and  Lieutenant 
Pat  Dowling  in  the  lead,  and  did  not  stop  till  they  had 
gained  a  footing  under  the  bank  of  the  road  beyond  the 
river. 

Right  on  their  heels  came  Company  I  under  the  Boer 
War  Veteran,  Captain  Richard  J.  Ryan,  in  the  same  per- 
fect formation.  They,  too,  swept  across  the  Ourcq  (Eddie 
Joyce  being  the  one  man  killed),  and  took  up  their  place 
with  Company  K  under  the  bank.  The  two  Captains  re- 
formed their  men  and  were  looking  over  the  situation.  Their 
objective  was  Meurcy  Farm.  But  that  lay  in  the  valley  and 
was  impossible  to  take  until  at  least  one  of  the  slopes  was 
cleared  to  its  summit;  as  a  direct  advance  would  expose 
them  to  fierce  enfilading  fire.  Even  where  they  were,  one 
group  of  enemy  machine  guns  could  fire  direct  on  their 
flank ;  so  Captain  Ryan  sent  one  of  his  best  men.  Sergeant 
E.  Shanahan,  with  Hugh  McFadden,  Pat  McKeon,  Het- 
trick,  Hartnett  and  others  to  put  it  out  of  action.  A  for- 
lorn hope,  he  felt,  but  they  did  it  without  losses,  as  Shana- 
han was  a  born  leader. 

The  line  w^as  scarcely  straightened  out  when  the  men 
were  given  the  word  to  advance.  The  left  of  Company  K 
moved  out  on  the  lower  slopes  along  the  little  valley  towards 
Meurcy  Farm;  the  right  of  K  and  all  of  I  at  an  angle 


166        FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

straight  up  the  bare,  smooth  slope  towards  the  machine  gun 
nests  that  were  spitting  fire  from  that  direction.  That  kind 
of  action  suited  Pat  Dowhng.  He  jumped  to  his  feet  and 
called  to  his  platoon  to  follow,  when  a  machine  gun  bullet 
gave  him  a  mortal  wound.  Sergeant  Embree  and  John  J. 
Conefry  fell  by  his  side.  A  heart-broken  soldier  lifted  the 
Lieutenant.  "Did  they  get  that  machine  gun  on  the  right?" 
"Yes,  sir."  Then,  "Thank  God !"  and  a  dauntless  leader  of 
men  was  no  more. 

The  line  swept  on.  The  slope  to  the  right  ran  through  a 
wheat  field  and  then  with  a  gentle  rise  to  the  summit.  In 
the  lower  portion  there  was  a  group  of  machine  guns 
manned  by  good  men.  But  they  had  to  deal  with  better 
Inen.  The  line  swung  around  the  guns  in  a  semi-circle,  the 
<nen  crawling  on  their  bellies  like  Indians  now.  The  rifles 
were  crackling  all  around,  their  sharp  bursts  of  fire  drown- 
ing at  times  the  incessant  pop,  pop,  pop  of  the  machine  guns. 
Many  of  the  German  gunners  were  killed  and  the  others 
found  it  nigh  impossible  to  lift  their  heads  from  their  holes 
to  work  the  pieces.  Not  one  of  them  offered  to  surrender. 
Most  of  them  died  at  their  posts.  A  few  sought  safety 
in  flight  and  some  of  these  managed  to  slip  back  up  the  hill 
to  safety.  We  met  some  of  these  men  long  afterwards. 
They  spoke  of  the  sweep  of  the  Battalion  across  the  Ourcq 
and  said  they  thought  Americans  were  crazy. 

Meanwhile  big  gallant  Merle-Smith  with  Company  L  had 
crossed  the  river  and  had  fallen  into  line  on  the  hill  to  the 
right  of  Company  I.  Major  McKenna,  anxious  to  extend 
his  flanks  as  far  as  possible,  had  thrown  in  Company  D, 
half  of  it  on  the  right  of  L,  well  into  territory  that  belonged 
to  the  neighboring  regiment,  and  half  to  the  left  rear  of  K, 
up  the  valley  towards  the  farm. 

The  men  who  had  the  farm  for  their  objective  fared  the 
best.  At  that  moment  it  was  not  very  strongly  held  and  the 
shoulder  of  the  hill  protected  them  from  fire  from  its  sum- 
mit. Sergeants  Meade  and  Crotty,  with  a  platoon  of  Com- 
pany PC,  followed  by  Lieutenant  Cook,  with  two  platoons 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  167 

of  D,  worked  their  way  up  the  valley.  There  was  a  sharp 
fight  imder  the  stone  walls  of  the  old  build  nig  and  gallant 
Bob  Foster  there  found  the  death  that  was  sure  to  be  his  in 
battle.  Carl  Nyquist  of  L  was  also  killed.  Finally,  rifles 
were  thrust  through  the  windows  and  the  last  of  the  Ger- 
mans retreated  across  the  courtyard  and  out  the  other  side. 
While  searching  for  food  (soldiers  always  go  into  battle 
after  a  long  fast),  Corporal  John  Gribbon  found  one  lone 
German  hiding  in  the  cellar  and  sent  him  to  the  rear.  Other 
soldiers  ran  into  the  orchard  like  school  boys  and  picked 
green  apples  to  satisfy  their  hunger.  Sergeant  Crotty  was 
sent  to  establish  a  line  of  sharp-shooters  to  keep  down  the 
fire  from  the  edge  of  Bois  Colas,  and  Sergeant  Dick  O'Neill 
held  the  Farni  with  his  platoon  of  Company  D,  until  the 
Germans,  learning  from  their  own  fugitives  that  it  had  been 
evacuated  by  their  men,  shelled  the  defenders  out  into  the 
open. 

The  main  attack  had  harder  going.  Near  the  crest  of 
the  hill  was  a  new  line  of  German  guns  much  stronger  than 
the  first  and  with  a  magnificent  field  of  fire  that  swept 
almost  every  part  of  the  slope.  Now  that  their  own  men 
at  the  base  were  out  of  the  way,  the  German  Artillery, 
too,  had  more  freedom  to  act,  and  shells  began  to  drop 
along  the  slope,  carrying  destruction.  The  whine  of  bul- 
lets was  incessant  and  the  quick  spurts  of  dust  spoke  of 
imminent  death.  But  still  the  line  kept  crawling  forward, 
each  man  keeping  his  resolution  to  the  sticking  point  with 
no  exhilaration  of  a  head-long  charge  nor  even  a  friendly 
touch  of  shoulder.  In  attacks  such  as  this  each  man  must 
crawl  forward  in  isolation,  keeping  his  interval  from  his 
neighbors  lest  destruction  should  reach  too  many  at  one 
time.    It  is  the  finest  test  of  courage. 

The  machine  guns  were  the  worst — and  not  alone  those  in 
front.  The  main  attack  was  up  the  slope  on  the  east  of  the 
brook  valley.  Across  the  narrow  valley  along  the  edge  of 
the  Bois  Colas  until  Anderson's  men  cleaned  them  out ;  and 
outside  Seringes,  the  Germans  had  other  guns  which  kept 


168  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

up  a  galling  flanking  fire  on  our  third  battalion.  And  from 
their  right  on  their  unprotected  flank  more  guns  were  at 
work.  Before  the  hill  was  half  won  many  were  wounded 
or  killed.  Company  K,  on  the  left,  exposed  to  the  fire 
across  the  valley,  was  the  first  to  suffer  heavily.  Lieutenant 
Gerald  Stott  was  badly  hit — mortally,  as  the  event  proved. 

Father  Hanley,  whose  disposition  did  not  permit  him  to 
remain  at  the  dressing  station,  had  gone  over  the  river 
with  Captain  Hurley  and  he  rushed  forward  to  save  the 
wounded  Lieutenant,  followed  by  Sergeant  Peter  Crotty 
with  Ted  Van  Yorx  and  George  Meyer.  The  dust  began 
spurting  around  them  and  Father  Hanley  went  down  with 
a  bullet  in  the  knee.  Despite  his  command  to  the  men  that 
they  should  not  risk  themselves,  the  three  brave  lads  car- 
ried him  in,  and  also  Lieutenant  Stott. 

Lieutenant  Arnold  made  a  desperate  attempt  to  get  in 
behind  the  machine  guns  on  the  crest  by  following  a  drain 
on  the  lower  slope.  He  had  gotten  well  forward  when 
he  was  mortally  hit.  Sergeant  John  Ross  went  ahead  to  get 
him,  but  was  struck  dead  by  the  side  of  his  Lieutenant,  as 
were  James  Daley  of  K,  and  John  Hession  of  L. 

Of  the  five  Kellys  of  Company  K,  two,  John  and  Fran- 
cis, both  daring  youths,  were  killed.  Howard  was  badly 
wounded  in  the  leg,  Herbert  was  not  yet  back  from  the 
gassing  at  Luneville.  Young  Jimmy,  a  lad  of  seventeen, 
alone  remained,  and  battled  as  if  he  felt  he  had  to  do  the 
fighting  for  the  whole  clan.  Of  the  five  Sullivans,  Jim  was 
the  only  one  hit  and  he  refused  to  quit  the  field.  The  same 
is  true  of  Sergeant  D'Acosta.  and  Victor  Van  Yorx  and 
Mike  Bannon  and  also  Herbert  McKenna  of  the  Mount 
Loretto  boys  of  Company  K.  The  other  lads  of  his  school 
showed  their  training  that  day.  Besides  Raymond  Staber, 
George  Duffy,  Joe  Gully  and  Tom  Fleming  paid  the  big 
price  for  their  patriotism.  So  too,  did  another  much  be- 
loved lad  in  the  Company,  James  Scott;  and  Cox,  Grey, 
Patrick  Ristraino,  Patrick  Caulfield,  Hugh  Quinn,  Will 
Ring,  and  Patrick  Cunningham  (the  last  three  in  front  of 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  169 

Meurcy  Farm),  with  Lewis  Shockler,  James  Daly,  Sylvia 
and  Dale,  Sharp  and  Ramsey,  who  received  their  death 
wounds  on  the  slopes  of  the  hill.  This  was  a  heart-breaking 
day  for  Captain  Hurley,  who  loved  his  boys,  but  he  kept  on 
cheerful  to  outward  view  with  his  two  remaining  Lieu- 
tenants, Metcalf  and  Williams,  and  non-coms  like  Meade, 
Farrell,  Crotty,  Bernard  McElroy,  John  Giblx)ns  and  others 
already  named.  But  soon  Lieutenant  Metcalf  was  sent 
back  wounded  and  Williams  was  the  only  Lieutenant  left. 

At  the  extreme  right  of  our  line  was  Company  L  with 
the  remnants  of  two  platoons  of  Company  D  under  Lieu- 
tenants Connelly  and  Daly.  Captain  Merle-Smith  was  hit 
early  in  the  day,  a  bullet  piercing  his  arm  as  he  raised  it  to 
signal  his  men  forward.  Lie  had  a  first  aid  bandage 
wrapped  round  it  and  then  forgot  about  it,  as  there  was 
too  much  to  do.  Lieutenant  Wellborne  also  was  hit  and 
refused  to  quit  the  field.  In  his  platoon  Sergeant  George 
Kerr,  a  great  favorite  in  the  company,  was  fatally  wounded. 
He  was  picked  up  by  Sergeant  Will  Murphy  (I  always 
wanted  to  make  a  priest  out  of  Will,  but  he  was  none  the 
worse  soldier  for  that),  and  carried  down  the  hill;  but 
George  died  before  the  bottom  was  reached  and  Murphy 
himself  was  badly  wounded. 

In  the  2nd  Platoon  Lieutenant  Watkins  was  killed  in  the 
very  front  line.  Near  him  fell  Sergeant  Tom  O'Donovan 
and  Bert  Landzert,  good  friends  of  mine  since  Border 
days.  Lieutenant  Spencer  was  also  wounded  doing  courage- 
ous liaison  work,  as  well  as  Lieutenants  Leslie  and  Booth 
and  Knowles,  who  had  battalion  duties  and  were  there  to 
help  in  co-ordination.  The  4th  Platoon  was  led  into  action 
by  my  loyal  friend.  Sergeant  John  Donoghue — like  Tom 
O'Donovan,  a  Killarney  man,  and  both  fine  specimens  of 
the  Irish  soldier.  He  was  hit  very  badly  in  the  early  part 
of  the  fray,  but  remained  there  for  hours  spurring  on  his 
men.  His  place  as  leader  was  taken  by  Sergeant  Ray 
Convey,  a  deep,  sincere,  religious  youth  whom  the  whole 
Company  admired.    He  was  a  gallant  leader,  till  death  and 


170        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

glory  claimed  him.  The  same  quick  route  to  heaven  was 
taken  by  Corporal  Neil  Fitzpatrick,  wounded  the  night  be- 
fore but  still  in  the  fray,  and  Dave  O'Brien,  a  quiet  saint 
and  a  model  soldier.  Owen  McNally  also,  and  the  two 
Coneys  boys,  George  Heinbock,  John  J.  Booth,  and  two 
youths  dear  to  all  for  their  nobility  of  character,  Lawrence 
Spencer  and  Bernard  Sheeran.  With  Lieutenant  Watkins 
and  Sergeant  O'Donovan  and  Convey  on  the  hilltop  lay  Mat 
Moran  and  Mario  Miranda,  Earl  Weill,  Roland  Phillips, 
Herbert  Stowbridge,  M.  Simpson,  John  Hayden,  Harold 
Yockers,  Elmer  Shaner  and  Preston  Carrick,  Dan  Reardon, 
Alexander  Jornest  (Russian)  and  James  Santori  (Italian), 
all  making  the  same  sacrifice  for  the  land  of  their  birth  or 
adoption. 

Arthur  Turner,  Walter  McCarty,  E.  J.  Morrissey,  Ray- 
mond Murphy  were  killed  in  town.  William  J.  Ormond, 
James  Cook,  James  Watson,  Herbert  Ray  and  Leroy  Mc- 
Neill died  of  wounds. 

Johnnie  McSherry,  the  irrepressible  youngster,  and  Maur- 
ice Hart,  the  staid  veteran,  were  both  carried  from  the 
field.  Sergeant  Arthur  McKenny  was  wounded  and  carried 
into  Meurcy  Farm,  where  he  was  afterward  made  prisoner 
by  the  enemy.  Of  the  two  McLaughlin  brothers,  Dan  was 
wounded  unto  death,  while  doing  great  work,  and  Harry, 
less  severely.  Two  other  brothers  of  the  same  name,  Long- 
ford men,  Bernard  and  Thomas  McLaughlin,  battled 
through  it  all  and  came  out  unscathed.  The  three  Mc- 
Cabes  fought  like  Maccabees.  Sergeants  Bezold,  Thomas 
Kieman  and  Bernard  Woods  were  wounded,  but  Sergeant 
William  Malinka,  Tom  Dunn  and  Leo  Mullin  came 
through. 

On  the  left  of  L  and  in  the  middle  of  the  line.  Company 
I  held  the  field  and  suffered  even  greater  losses;  but  they 
too  kept  working  steadily  forward  and  no  man  went  back 
whose  duty  it  was  to  stay.  Lieutenant  H.  H.  Smith  was 
killed  on  the  last  slope,  urging  his  men  forward.  Ser- 
geant Frank  McMorrow  and  William  Lyle,  Paddy  Flynn, 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  171 

and  Hugh  McFadden  kept  the  platoon  going-.  Lieutenant 
Cortlandt  Johnson,  Hke  Captain  Ryan,  kept  moving  all  along 
the  line  unmindful  of  danger,  until  he  was  badly  wounded. 
His  platoon  was  in  good  hands.  Sergeant  Charles  Con- 
nolly took  command  and  kept  them  advancing  till  death 
called  him  from  the  fray.  Across  his  body  fell  Tommy 
Brennan,  his  closest  friend — "In  death  not  divided."  Ser- 
geant Billy  McLaughlin,  a  thorough  soldier,  took  command 
but  five  minutes  later  he,  too,  was  killed  as  he  led  the  ad- 
vance shouting,  "Let's  go  and  get  'em,  men !"  Otto  Ernst 
and  John  O'Rourke  were  killed  at  the  very  top  of  the  hill, 
but  Lcnihan  and  Vail,  Adikes  and  L}Tich,  still  held  the  sur- 
vivors together  until  they,  too,  were  woimded.  John  J. 
Maddock,  a  veteran  of  the  Regular  Army,  was  badly  hit 
while  trying  to  save  Corporal  Beckwith. 

Here,  too,  fell  Lieutenant  Beach,  killed  by  shrapnel  while 
shooting  an  automatic.  Along  side  him  lay  in  a  row  like 
harvest  sheaves,  Matt  O'Brien,  William  Corbett,  Roger 
Minogue,  Patrick  McCarthy,  Patrick  McKeon,  Floyd  Baker, 
Louis  Bloodgood  and  James  Powell.  Sergeant  Charlie 
Cooper  escaped  severely  wounded  and  Dan  Mullin  led  what 
was  left  of  the  platoon. 

It  was  at  the  top  of  the  hill  that  the  Captain  was 
wounded,  a  bullet  going  through  his  left  side.  Before  he 
fell  he  had  looked  the  situation  over.  The  forward  lines 
were  now  able  to  see  clearly  the  whole  field.  In  front  the 
terrain  stretched  over  perfectly  level  ground  for  five  hun- 
dred yards  to  the  edge  of  the  forest  of  Nesles  where  one 
could  detect  the  prepared  emplacements  and  regularly  wired 
positions.  It  was  useless  to  advance  in  that  direction;  not  a 
man  could  ever  cross  that  stretch  alive.  To  the  right  a  com- 
pany of  the  Alabamas  had  come  up,  but  they,  too,  had  been 
swept  to  pieces  by  the  German  fire  and  no  more  managed 
to  reach  the  top.  To  the  left,  across  the  valley,  our  second 
battalion  had  begun  to  work  its  way  up  the  opposite  slope 
towards  Seringes.  Their  fire  could  be  detected  as  they 
wormed  their  way  forward. 


172        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Looking  back  down  the  hill  the  sight  was  discouraging. 
The  ground  was  littered  with  the  bodies  of  the  brave,  and 
the  slopes  of  the  Ourcq  were  dotted  with  the  wounded, 
helping  one  another  to  the  dressing  station  across  the  river 
in  Villers  sur  Fere. 

Half  the  battalion  was  out  of  action.  Of  five  Lieuten- 
ants, Hurley  had  lost  three  killed,  and  one  wounded.  Merle- 
Smith  was  wounded  and  also  three  of  his  four  officers,  the 
fourth  being  killed.  Eugene  Gannon,  a  brave  and  com- 
petent soldier,  was  now  his  second  in  command.  Ryan, 
badly  wounded,  was  the  only  officer  left  in  I,  though  he  had 
well  placed  confidence  in  his  first  sergeant,  Patrick  McMini- 
man,  a  rock-ribbed  old-timer,  and  Sergeants  Shanahan  and 
Patrick  Collins. 

All  three  commanders  decided  that  the  position  on  the 
top  of  the  hill  was  untenable.  When  they  had  swept  over 
the  last  emplacements  of  the  German  guns  on  the  hill  they 
not  only  found  that  their  own  further  advance  was  impos- 
sible; they  had  also  left  the  German  artillery  free  to  act,  and 
the  shelling  began  with  terrific  vigor.  So  the  main  body 
drew  back  a  little  belcrvv  the  crest,  leaving  automatic  gun- 
ners and  sharp-shooters  to  keep  the  Germans  from  ventur- 
ing forward  from  the  woods.  Our  own  machine  guns,  the 
Wisconsin  lads  manning  them,  had  followed  the  advance, 
the  gunners  fighting  with  desperate  courage.  The  ammuni- 
tion was  carried  up  by  their  men  and  ours  at  a  fearful 
cost.  Five  feet  or  so  a  man  might  run  with  it  and  then  go 
down.  Without  a  moment's  hesitation,  some  other  soldier 
would  grab  it  and  run  forward  to  go  down  in  his  turn. 
But  the  gims  had  to  be  fed  and  still  another  would  take  the 
same  dreadful  chance.  Death  was  forgotten.  Every  man 
thought  only  of  wanning  the  fight.  Finally  the  guns  were 
put  out  of  action  by  shell  fire  at  the  top  of  the  hill  and 
there  they  stood  uselessly,  their  gunners  lying  dead  around 
them. 

Death  was  busy  on  that  hill  that  morning.  It  claimed 
Johnnie  Bradley,  the  baby  of  the  Company,  for  whom  life 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  173 

was  still  an  unexplored  field;  and  Ben  Gunnell  of  the 
Northwest  Mounted  Police,  who  had  tried  most  earthly- 
things  and  found  them  wanting.  Pat  Stanley,  who  had  left 
his  kitchen  to  fight,  found  a  noble  end  to  his  fighting.  Ar- 
thur Matthews,  mortally  wounded,  spent  what  remained  to 
him  of  breath,  calling  words  of  encouragement  to  his  com- 
panions. Two  men  worked  side  by  side, — one  was  taken 
and  the  other  left.  Frank  Mulligan  and  Frank  Van  Bramer 
worked  an  automatic.  Van  Bramer  was  called.  John 
O'Hara  went  the  long  road  and  Jim  O'Connor  stuck  it  out 
untouched.  Frankie  Connolly  took  the  automatic  from  Mc- 
Carthy's dead  hands  and  kept  it  going  all  morning.  Eddie 
Martin  and  Will  Corbett,  liaison  men,  were  shot  down,  and 
Charlie  Garrett  wounded.  The  voices  of  Thomas  Curry 
and  Henry  Lynch  and  Arthur  Thompson  were  hushed  for- 
ever. Frank  Courtney,  Will  Flynn,  Earl  Rhodes,  Thomas 
Boyle,  Carl  Moler,  John  McCabe,  Harold  Van  Buskirk, 
Louis  Ehrhardt,  Fred  Muesse,  Darcy  Newman,  Melvin 
Spitz,  kept  up  the  fight  of  that  bare  hillside  with  no  thought 
of  retreat  until  their  heroic  souls  were  sped.  Charles  Ford 
and  Spencer  Ely,  Albert  Schering  and  Thomas  Shannon 
were  carried  from  the  field  and  died  of  their  wounds. 

Captain  Hurley,  in  command  of  the  battalion  on  the  hill, 
had  gone  down  to  confer  with  the  Colonel.  Captains  Ryan 
and  Merle-Smith  were  both  wounded.  The  latter  kept 
cheerfully  moving  around  amongst  his  men,  while  Ryan 
had  to  lie  in  a  depression  and  try  to  keep  up  the  spirits  of 
his  followers  by  calling  to  them.  When  his  voice  failed 
him,  Paddy  Flynn,  a  clean-cut  young  Irish  athlete,  came  and 
lay  along  side  him  and  coached  the  team  like  a  captain  on 
the  base  lines.  As  he  raised  his  head  to  call  he  was  hit  on 
the  cheek,  but  he  kept  on  urging  resistance  until  he  was 
finally  wounded  severely.  Paddy  Hackett's  voice  was  also 
heard  throughout  the  fight  urging  the  old  gallants  to  stick, 
until  he,  too,  found  his  place  among  the  heroes  of  the  regi- 
ment that  are  gone. 

And  still  the  remnants  of  the  battalion  held  their  ground, 


174  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

though  that  ground  was  being  plowed  by  shells.  They  had 
the  hill ;  and  if  a  general  forward  movement  was  on,  as  they 
had  been  told,  it  was  their  place  to  hold  that  hill  till  the 
other  organizations  could  come  up,  even  though  the  last  man 
amongst  them  should  remain  there  for  his  long  sleep.  Caj>- 
tain  Meaney  had  sent  up  reinforcements  to  piece  out  the 
thinned  line.  A  platoon  under  Lieutenant  Ahearn  arrived, 
but  reinforcements  only  added  to  the  slaughter.  What  was 
needed  was  artillery  fire  and  strong  supporting  movements 
on  the  flanks.  Lieutenant  Ahearn  was  wounded  and  two 
of  his  best  Sergeants,  Patrick  Clark  and  Patrick  Hayes. 
Sergeant  William  Francis  was  killed,  also  Corporals  Patrick 
Cooke  and  George  Hoblitzell,  one  of  two  fine  brothers ;  and 
Patrick  Byrne,  Hubert  Hill,  James  Scanlan,  John  Tobin 
and  John  Donahue  fought  their  last  fight.  Mat  Mahoney, 
Frank  Cullum,  John  Powers  and  Bill  Conville,  with  many 
others,  were  badly  wounded. 

Lieutenant  Connelly  had  tried  to  remove  Captain  Ryan 
from  the  field.  But  the  Captain  threatened  to  shoot  any- 
body who  would  attempt  to  take  him  away  from  his  men. 
Finally,  about  noon.  Captain  Merle-Smith  came  to  him  with 
information  that  the  order  had  come  to  withdraw,  through 
the  1st  Battalion,  which  already  occupied  the  lower  slopes  of 
the  hill. 

That  task  remained  to  carry  in  the  wounded.  Company 
M  gave  great  help,  but  every  man  who  could  walk  lent  a 
hand  to  this  task  of  friendship.  Corporal  Dynan,  who  had 
already  done  more  than  his  share  of  the  fighting,  got 
wounded  finally  while  helping  others  off  the  field. 

Lieutenant  Williams  remained  out  to  hold  the  advance 
position  with  a  platoon  of  Company  K,  including  Sergeants 
Joe  Farrell  and  Peter  Crotty,  Corporals  George  Meyer, 
Patrick  Ryan,  John  Naughton  and  John  McLaughlin. 

The  survivors  were  a  sorry  remnant  of  the  splendid  bat- 
talion that  had  so  gallantly  swept  across  the  Ourcq  that 
morning.    But  they  had  carried  out  a  soldier's  task. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  175 

Their's  not  to  reason  why, 
Their's  but  to  do  and  die, 

Disputes  may  arise  about  the  orders  that  sent  them  in 
but  they  will  not  affect  the  place  in  the  martial  annals  of 
their  race  and  country  which  was  made  on  that  day  of  tragic 
glory  by  the  Shamrock  Battalion  of  the  old  Irish  regi- 
ment. Laurels  grow  from  the  graves  of  the  dead.  Laurels, 
too,  encircle  the  brows  of  every  man  who  fought  that  day 
on  Hill  152. 

Still  further  news  of  tragedy  waited  for  them.  Their 
gallant  Major  was  dead.  Major  McKenna  had  tried  to 
recall  his  Company  when  the  word  came  to  countermand 
the  attack  order.  But  his  wild  Irish  had  rushed  to  the  attack 
with  too  much  eagerness  for  that,  and  the  situation  was 
beyond  mending  in  this  way.  They  could  not  retreat  under 
the  fire  of  the  machine  guns  on  the  hill  which  could  mow 
them  down  as  they  recrossed  the  river  with  nothing  gained 
from  their  sacrifice.  They  had  to  go  ahead  and  put  these 
guns  out  of  action.  When  he  had  seen  how  things  were 
going,  the  Major  started  back  along  the  Ourcq  to  consult 
with  Colonel  McCoy.  A  shell  came  over  knocking  the 
Major  down  and  wounding  his  Adjutant,  Lieutenant  Cas- 
sidy.  When  the  Lieutenant,  with  Sergeant  Major  Joyce  and 
George  Strenk,  ran  to  pick  him  up,  they  found  him  dead, 
though  without  a  wound  upon  his  body.  They  bore  him  in 
sorrowing,  as  every  man  in  the  regiment  sorrowed  when  the 
news  went  round,  at  the  loss  of  a  brave  and  beloved  leader 
whose  talents  fitted  him  for  a  high  destiny  if  life  were 
spared  him,  but  to  whom  had  fallen  the  highest  destiny 
of  all,  and  one  which  he  had  always  expected  would  be  his — 
that  of  dying  for  his  country. 

His  Company  Commanders  had  been  informed  of  his 
death  not  long  after  it  happened,  and  Captain  Hurley  had 
taken  general  direction  of  the  fight  when  Ryan  was 
wounded.  Hurley  came  back  to  report  on  the  situation  to 
Colonel    McCoy,    and    while    talking   to    him    was    badly 


176        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

wounded  by  shell  fire.  The  Colonel  had  already  made  up  his 
mind  on  the  matter  and  Major  Donovan,  with  the  ist  Bat- 
talion, was  crossing  the  river  to  effect  a  relief. 

But  meanwhile  another  battle,  scarcely  less  fierce,  had 
been  going  on  on  the  western  slopes  of  the  brook.  On 
Saturday  afternoon  Major  Anderson,  with  the  2nd  Bat- 
talion, had  received  orders  to  proceed  from  Courpoil,  north 
through  Beuvardes,  and  maintain  close  liaison  with  the 
3rd,  which  was  to  go  to  the  river  and  get  contact  with  the 
enemy.  Anderson  marched  his  men  up  to  a  place  north  of 
the  forest  of  Fere  at  the  southwestern  extremity  of  Villers 
sur  Fere.  Scouts  were  sent  out  to  examine  the  ground 
toward  the  river,  while  the  Major  and  his  four  Captains 
went  to  the  town  to  interview  the  French  Commander,  who 
told  them  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  cross  the  Ourcq 
without  artillery  preparation,  owing  to  the  strong  position 
held  by  the  enemy.  They  obtained  information  about  the 
dispositions  and  plans  of  the  3rd  battalion  and  then  re- 
turned to  their  commands. 

About  half  past  three  in  the  morning  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Mitchell  came  with  the  information  that  the  attack  was  to 
be  made  at  5  145  and  that  they  were  not  to  remain  in  sup- 
port, but  to  advance  to  the  attack  at  the  left  of  the  3rd 
Battalion.  Anderson  aroused  his  men  and  formed  them  in 
the  field  north  of  the  forest  with  Companies  E  and  F  in 
the  front  line,  E  being  on  the  right,  and  G  and  H  behind 
them.  They  advanced  in  approach  formation  through  the 
fields  until  they  reached  the  southern  slope  of  the  crest 
just  south  of  the  river,  where  orders  were  received  for  the 
battalions  to  halt. 

This  advance  was  made  under  heavy  shell  fire  and  at  seri- 
ous cost.  Early  in  the  advance  Charles  B.  Wethered  and 
William  Hurst  were  killed  by  the  same  shell,  which  also 
wounded  Haggerty,  Dearborn  and  Strang;  and  nearer  to 
the  river  Company  H  suffered  a  tremendous  loss  by  the 
severe  wounding  of  Captain  James  G.  Finn,  whose  leg 
was  so  badly  gashed  that  he  had  to  be  carried  from  the 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  177 

field.  The  place  where  the  battalion  was  to  cross  was  to 
the  west  of  the  little  brook.  To  their  left  was  Fere  en 
Tardenois,  which  was  being  systematically  attacked  by  the 
French  troops.  Our  people  had  time  to  admire  the  method 
in  which  these  seasoned  warriors  went  about  their  busi- 
ness. They  had  dug  in  during  the  night  so  that  they  could 
place  their  fire  against  three  sides  of  the  town,  but  they 
evidently  had  no  intention  of  going  over  the  river  until  the 
fire  of  the  machine  gims  had  been  fairly  well  blanked.  Some 
of  their  men  were  engaged  in  drawing  fire  from  the  German 
nests,  while  others  were  sniping  at  them  from  their  shelters. 

Our  men  got  the  advantage  of  the  French  thoroughness 
W'hen,  as  they  came  over  the  crest,  they  were  lil^erally  spat- 
tered with  bullets  from  two  or  three  detached  houses  on 
the  left  just  outside  Fere  en  Tardenois.  Our  one  pounders 
were  directed  at  them;  but  the  French  gave  those  hornet's 
nests  their  coup  dc  grace  when  they  pulled  up  one  of  their 
75 's  which  they  had  handy,  right  into  the  front  line  and 
sent  a  few  shells  straight  as  rifle  bullets  into  the  houses. 
Captain  Kelly  sent  my  old  friend,  John  Finnegan,  with  a 
patrol  to  see  if  any  of  the  enemy  were  left  in  the  houses. 
John  came  back  with  the  report  that  there  were  no  Ger- 
mans there  but  dead  ones. 

The  battalion  rushed  down  and  across  the  Ourcq  without 
a  casualty.  There  was  one  German  gun  which  commanded 
the  little  bridge  and  which  could  have  caused  great  losses, 
but  the  gunners  were  daunted  by  the  resolute  advance  of 
our  men,  as  they  knew  that  no  matter  how  many  they 
might  kill,  they  could  not  themselves  escape,  so  they  threw 
up  their  hands  and  surrendered. 

Companies  E  and  F  rushed  over  the  little  bridge  and 
through  the  river  and  up  the  slope  of  the  hill  towards 
Seringes  and  Bois  Colas.  Here  Captain  Charles  Baker  of 
Company  E  was  badly  wounded  in  the  neck  and  shoulder, 
one  of  his  best  Sergeants,  Michael  Lynch,  was  killed,  and 
the  bold  Steve  Derrig  got  a  mortal  wound.     (Long  after- 


178  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

wards  we  learned  with  deep  and  universal  regret  that  Cap- 
tain Baker  died  of  his  wounds.) 

Company  F  on  the  left  had  the  place  of  danger,  as  their 
route  lay  straight  up  the  hill  and  over  the  flats,  to  skirt  the 
village  of  Seringes,  the  village  itself  being  allotted  to  the 
Ohios  when  they  could  take  their  place  in  the  line.  Since 
they  had  been  unavoidably  detained  and  the  French  were 
still  working  in  their  business-like  fashion  at  the  task  of 
getting  Fere  en  Tardenois  ready  for  capture,  Kelly's  left 
flank  was  bound  to  be  in  the  air  with  the  prospects  of  worse 
to  come  if  he  got  far  enough  forward  to  have  it  pass  the 
village,  which  was  giving  trouble  enough  while  in  front. 

He  sent  messengers  to  Company  E  on  his  right  to  see 
whether  Bois  Colas  was  rid  of  the  enemy,  for  if  it  were 
strongly  held,  his  men  would  be  simply  fighting  down  a  lane 
into  a  trap.  Jim  Ouigley  of  Company  E  had  been  in  there 
already  and  Jim  came  around  to  report  that  the  woods  was 
not  held  by  the  Germans.  Later  Captain  Prout  sent  a  party 
into  the  wood  and  Lieutenant  Conners,  commanding  E 
Company,  took  possession  of  it  up  to  its  northern  edge. 
Kelly's  men  had  meanwhile  been  going  forward  in  spite  of 
Artillery  and  IMachine  Gun  fire,  until  they  found  a  spot 
from  which  they  could  effectively  retaliate.  This  was  a  cut- 
ting in  the  roadway  between  Fere  en  Tardenois  and  the 
north  edge  of  Bois  Colas.  The  shelter  it  gave  was  not  very 
great,  but  Lieutenant  Frank  I\Iarsh  had  his  automatic  and 
rifle  men  lined  up  in  the  ditch,  happy  to  get  a  shot  at  the 
foe  that  had  been  sending  death  amongst  them.  In  the 
advance  they  had  lost  Frank  Connaughton,  Charles  Fox  and 
]\Iichael  Campbell,  and  later  on  Charles  Caplinger,  Harry 
Jennings  and  John  J.  McGloin.  While  holding  the  road 
other  good  men  were  killed.  Matt  Wynne,  who  was  known 
to  the  whole  regiment;  Frank  Divine,  Lawrence  Brennan, 
Alfred  O'Neill,  Sergeant  Thomas  Erb  and  Eugene  Doty 
were  mortally  wounded,  and  also  Harry  Mansfield  and 
Charles  Melsa. 

Kelly  with  his  headquarters  group,  ist  Sergeant  Josepb- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  179 

Blake,  Sergeant  John  P.  Mahon,  Corporals  Long  and  Fin- 
negan,  Harris  and  McLean  and  also  Lieutenant  Ogle  had 
his  post  at  the  crest  of  the  hill  where  he  could  watch  the 
fortunes  of  his  forward  detachment.  Finding  them  hard 
pressed  he  got  two  automatics  from  the  Ohios,  who  had 
now  crossed  the  river  and  were  forming  under  the  bank, 
and  sent  Long  and  Finnegan  for  reinforcements  from  his 
own  Battalion.  Colonel  Anderson  ordered  them  sent,  and 
detachments  from  all  three  Companies  proceeded  through 
Bois  Colas  and  started  working  forward  to  support  the 
right  flank  of  the  F  Company  men.  In  this  operation 
Company  E  lost  Thomas  Cullen,  Philip  Ford,  Edward 
Fuld,  Frank  0'J\Ieara,  Louis  Hazelton,  Louis  Cohen,  John 
Costello,  Michael  Breen,  Emmett  Bingham,  Corporal  Gus 
Winter  (hit  carrying  Cullen  in),  and  Corporal  John  Cronin, 
the  saint  of  the  Company  (who  had  gone  as  a  volunteer), 
and  whose  body  lay  when  I  came  to  bury  him  the  nearest  to 
the  enemy  of  any  soldier  of  ours.  Not  far  from  Cronin's 
body  lay  four  men  of  Company  H,  John  T.  McCarthy,  Pat- 
rick Reynolds,  George  Smith  and  Thomas  Hayes.  G  Com- 
pany lost  John  Conroy,  Floyd  Graham,  and  Edmund  Rear- 
don.  Patrick  Scanlan,  whose  brother  Dan  I  had  buried 
at  Baccarat,  was  vv^ounded  this  day,  but  stuck  to  his  Com- 
pany to  meet  his  death  the  day  following,  as  did  James 
Higgins  of  the  same  Company.  Of  the  two  guides  from 
Company  F,  Long  was  wounded  and  the  heroic  John  Fin- 
negan fought  his  last  fight. 

It  was  evident  to  anybody  that  a  further  advance  with- 
out careful  artillery  preparation  was  impossible.  Like  the 
3rd  Battalion  on  the  other  hill  across  this  valley,  they  had 
reached  the  level  approach  to  the  strong  defenses  in  the 
village  and  along  the  southern  edge  of  the  forest.  It  was 
an  artillery  job.  And  any  infantry  commander  who  would 
send  his  men  across  that  open  space  would  deserve  a  court 
martial.  The  difficulty  for  both  battalions  arose  from  the 
alacrity  with  which  they  had  obeyed  the  orders  from  above 
which  sent  them  across  the  Ourcq  on  a  bayonet  charge 


180  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

against  a  fleeing  foe.  They  had  followed  the  orders,  and 
overcoming  the  first  resistance  of  the  enemy,  they  found 
themselves  opposed  to  the  main  line  of  defense  with  prac- 
tically nobody  else,  French  or  American,  on  their  side  of 
the  river.  Their  flanks  unsupported,  to  go  forward  would 
be  to  hand  the  Germans  a  couple  of  geese  to  pluck,  and  as 
there  were  no  means  of  communication  with  the  distant  ar- 
tillery except  runners,  that  arm  of  the  service  could  not 
act  without  grave  danger  of  shooting  up  its  own  side. 

The  Ohios  meanwhile  had  pushed  their  way  up  to  have 
their  share  in  the  battle.  But  since  they  had  been  considered 
as  a  support  regiment,  they  naturally  thought  they  were 
coming  to  relieve  the  New  Yorkers,  and  officers  and  men 
announced  that  supposed  fact  to  the  groups  of  our  men. 
Anderson  stormed  around  when  he  heard  of  it  and  Kelly 
and  Prout  were  disgusted,  but  they  finally  accepted  the 
situation  of  falling  back  into  a  support  position  when  orders 
came  to  make  it  final.  After  their  struggles  in  the  battle 
less  than  two  weeks  before  the  second  battalion  deserved  a 
comparative  rest  from  the  toil  of  fighting.  They  withdrew 
to  the  northern  edge  of  the  Ourcq,  where  they  supported 
the  advance  of  the  ist  Battalion  the  next  day.  Later  the 
same  day  they  formed  a  connecting  link  with  the  Alabamas 
on  our  right.  The  losses  of  the  battalion  in  the  remaining 
days  of  the  fight  were  few  in  comparison.  John  IMcGeary 
of  G  was  killed  while  saving  the  wounded  of  Company  H. 
Sergeant  James  P.  Robinson  and  Thomas  Bugler  were 
killed  by  shell  fire  and  also  Arthur  Baia  of  Company  E. 
On  July  30th,  while  providing  for  the  needs  of  men  in  line, 
two  Sergeants  of  Company  F,  Charles  Denon  and  Charles 
D.  Echeverria,  were  killed,  and  Lieutenant  Smith  and 
Thomas  Kelleher  of  the  same  company  seriously  wounded. 
While  engaged  in  a  similar  task  the  First  Sergeant  of  Com- 
pany H,  Daniel  O'Neill,  whose  brother,  William,  had  been 
killed  in  Champagne,  was  mortally  wounded,  leaving  only 
one  of  that  famous  trio  still  alive. 

It  was  between  nine  and  ten  in  the  morning  that  Major 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ 


181 


Donovan's  battalion  had  reached  the  river,  and  not  long 
after  midday  the  relief  of  the  3rd  Battalion  was  practically 
complete.  Major  Donovan  brought  into  line  with  him 
three  Companies,  A,  B  and  C.  Company  D,  which  had  been 
on  the  hill  since  early  morning,  was  told  that  it  could  retire 
with  the  3rd  Battalion.     It  had  suffered  losses,  though  not 


®^     Wood) 


THE  BATTLE  FIELD  OF  THE  OURCQ 


SO  severe  as  the  other  companies.  The  platoons  on  the  left 
of  the  line  had  occupied  Meurcy  Farm  with  Company  K. 
On  the  right  the  headquarters  group  and  one  platoon  under 
Lieutenants  Connelly  and  Daly  had  performed  a  very  neat 
job  of  infilitration.  There  was  a  group  of  German  machine 
guns  in  a  clump  of  trees  some  distance  beyond  the  right 
flank  of  our  battalion,  which  was  exceedingly  annoying.  So 
Connelly  took  his  detachment  far  to  the  right,  shielded  by 


182  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

the  bank  of  the  river  road,  and  led  them  up  a  gully  into 
the  rear  of  the  Germans,  driving  them  out  by  rifle  fire  and 
hand  grenades.  Two  of  his  men,  James  Hayes  and  Harry 
Silver,  an  automatic  rifle  team,  occupied  a  lone  outpost 
v^hich  was  attacked  by  the  enemy.  Silver  was  mortally  hit, 
but  kept  on  working  his  rifle  till  it  dropped  from  his 
hands.  Hayes  grasped  it  and  kept  up  the  fight  till  he  was 
wounded  and  taken  prisoner. 

In  spite  of  their  hard  day,  Company  D  wished  to  remain 
in  the  fight  with  their  own  battalion.  Connelly  and  Daly 
represented  this  to  the  Major,  who  was  very  glad  to  keep 
them. 

Alajor  Donovan  did  not  try  to  retain  occupation  of  all 
the  hill,  since  the  results  of  the  gallant  work  of  the  preced- 
ing battalion  were  preserved  if  the  German  machine  guns 
could  be  prevented  from  re-establishing  their  posts  on  it. 
So  he  placed  automatic  riflemen  and  sharp-shooters  in  the 
wheatfield,  and  drew  up  the  main  body  of  his  troops  under 
the  lea  of  the  high  inner  bank  of  the  river  road,  the  one 
under  which  McKenna's  Battalion  had  formed  for  their  at- 
tack. The  Alabamas  were  under  the  same  bank  further  to 
the  right,  while  Anderson's  men  held  the  river  bank  and 
the  wooded  swampy  ground  across  the  valley  to  the  left, 
keeping  in  touch  with  the  Chios,  who  were  also  along  the 
river. 

The  afternoon  and  night  passed  without  any  special  in- 
fantry action.  When  the  strength  of  the  enemy  resistance 
became  manifest,  the  artillery  were  put  to  work.  Both 
regiments  of  our  divisional  light  artillery  were  given  to 
the  83rd  Infantry  Brigade:  The  151st  (Minnesota)  behind 
us  and  the  149th  (Illinois)  behind  the  Chios.  Further  back 
our  heavies,  the  150th  (Indiana)  and  Corps  Artillery  were 
sending  their  huge  missiles  over  our  heads  at  the  enemy's 
position.  The  edges  of  the  forest  of  Nesles  and  the  roads 
behind  were  heavily  shelled.  This  led  the  enemy  to  a  great 
deal  of  counter-battery  work,  and  the  infantry  had  it  easier. 
But  their  shelters  were  exposed  at  all  times  to  machine  gun 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  183 

fire  and  it  was  dangerous  for  a  man  to  lift  up  his  head. 
Companies  B  and  C  successively  held  the  hill  slope  and  had 
many  casualties.  Captain  Reilley  was  wounded,  but  kept 
right  on  till  the  whole  battle  was  over.  Tommy  Mooney 
was  hit  four  times  and  came  off  the  hill  joking  with  his 
friends,  who  had  so  often  said  that  he  was  too  thin  for  a 
German  to  hit  him.  B  Company  lost  good  men  in  James 
Phillips,  William  Doyle,  Michael  Tierney,  Joseph  Chn/n- 
bers,  John  A,  Lane  and  Thomas  Kelley.  That  night,  loo, 
Barney  Barry,  soldier  and  saint,  pulled  the  latchstrings  of 
the  gate  of  Paradise.  From  C  Company  also  Mat  Carberry 
and  Richard  Dieringer,  Joe  Augustine  and  John  O'Connor, 
good  lads  all  and  true,  received  their  mortal  wounds  and 
John  J.  Campbell  and  John  F.  Autry,  litter  bearers  of  Com- 
pany A,  were  killed  while  performing  their  work  of  mercy. 

By  morning  the  plans  were  made  for  a  new  alignment 
for  attack.  The  165th  Infantry  was  to  sweep  the  valley 
along  both  sides  of  the  brook,  with  Bois  Colas  on  the  left 
of  it,  and  IMeurcy  Farm  on  the  right,  as  their  immediate 
objectives.  The  second  battalion  w^as  to  be  in  close  support. 
Further  left,  the  Ohios  were  to  advance  on  the  right  of  the 
French  and  occupy  the  Village  of  Seringes  et  Nesles.  The 
movement  of  the  84th  Brigade  was  co-ordinated  with  the 
advance  of  the  83rd. 

This  called  for  a  shiftin-Tf  of  Donovan's  battalion  to  the 
left,  to  face  up  the  valley.  The  movement  was  carried  out 
in  the  early  morning  of  Monday,  July  29th,  with  few  losses, 
but  one  of  them  a  cosily  one.  Lieutenant  Daly,  thinking  as 
usual  of  the  safety  of  his  men,  and  paying  little  attention 
to  himself,  was  killed.  Well,  as  Lieutenant  Burke  had  said 
of  him  two  days  before,  there  was  no  place  else  he  would 
rather  be.    His  sacrifice  was  made  with  a  generous  heart. 

The  Battalion  was  lined  up  in  the  following  order.  Right 
of  the  brook.  Company  A,  with  Lieutenant  Baldwin  in  the 
lead,  and  Company  B  in  support,  under  Captain  Reilley, 
their  mission  being  to  debouch  from  the  scattered  trees 
which  concealed  them,  and  advance  up  the  gentle  slope 


184  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

forward  and  right  to  Meurcy  Farm.  On  the  left,  Company 
C,  under  Captain  Bootz,  had  the  van,  with  Company  D, 
under  Lieutenant  Connelly,  in  support.  Their  work  was  to 
push  on  to  the  left  of  the  brook  and  clean  up  Bois  Colas, 
a  thickly  wooded  clump  of  trees  about  as  big  as  three 
city  blocks,  which  lay  two  hundred  yards  west  of  the 
farm. 

Company  A  had  only  one  officer  with  them  in  the  attack 
as  Lieutenant  D'Aguerro,  with  Sergeants  Duff  and  Schmidt, 
had  charge  of  a  platoon  whose  duty  it  was  to  carry  am- 
munition. Lieutenant  Baldwin,  an  earnest,  courageous 
man,  was  in  command,  with  Sergeant  Thomas  J.  Sweeney 
as  First  Sergeant.  They  advanced  at  eight  o'clock  in  the 
morning  and  were  immediately  made  to  feel  that  they 
were  in  for  a  hard  time.  There  were  German  machine  guns 
now  in  Aleurcy  Farm  and  on  both  sides  of  it.  The  shelling, 
too,  was  vigorous,  as  all  their  motions  could  be  seen  and 
reported.  Sergeants  Fred  Garretson  and  Don  Matthews 
led  a  detachment  with  great  prudence  and  dexterity,  cap- 
turing one  of  the  machine  gun  nests  and  seven  prisoners. 
The  direct  attack  against  the  farm,  however,  was  not  to  be 
successful  that  day.  Sergeant  Scully,  who  had  been  badly 
wounded  in  the  Luneville  raid,  was  wounded  again  early  in 
the  fight.  Acting  Sergeant  Willie  Mehl,  whose  father  used 
to  bring  him  to  our  encampment  as  a  lad,  was  also  hit; 
and  many  another  good  man  was  put  out  of  action  forever. 
Corporal  Petersilze  was  killed  and  Corporal  Michael  O'Sul- 
livan,  a  big,  bright,  good-natured  giant,  whom  I  had  held  in 
my  arms  as  a  baby,  and  another  of  the  Campbells  of  Com- 
pany A,  Louis,  this  time,  slender  Harry  Kane  and  sturdy 
Dan  O'Connell,  Stephen  Curtin,  who  did  good  work 
with  his  automatic;  James  Ronan,  Leroy  Hanover, 
Joseph  P.  Myers,  James  Robinson,  John  Gray,  John 
Williams,  Clyde  Evans,  John  Boneslawski,  William  Barton, 
John  Gilluly,  John  Rice,  William  Thompson,  W.  V.  Kelley, 
John  Fisher,  Dennis  Donovan,  Fred  Floar,  William  Mallin, 
were  killed  on  the  field.    Fred  Finger  was  killed  going  back 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  185 

with  the  wounded.  Tom  Fleming  and  Charles  Mack  died 
in  the  dressing  station,  and  Anthony  Michaels,  Albert  Poole, 
James  Tiffany,  Patrick  Carlisle  and  Edward  Blanchard  died 
of  wounds  in  the  hospital. 

Lieutenant  Baldwin  was  in  the  van  waving  his  pistol, 
when  a  machine  gun  bullet  struck  him  in  the  chest.  His 
last  words  were:  "Sergeant  (to  Sweeney),  carry  out  the 
orders!"  His  spirit  animated  the  brave  men  who  followed. 
Moreover,  they  had  still  a  fine  leader  in  Tom  Sweeney,  and 
they  kept  pushing  ahead,  some  of  them  meeting  their  fate 
under  the  very  walls  of  the  farm.  It  was  all  that  they 
could  do.  One  officer  and  twenty-five  men  of  the  dimin- 
ished company  were  killed  that  morning.  Multiply  the 
deaths  by  six  to  get  the  total  casualties  and  one  can  see 
that  few  indeed  were  left.  Sergeant  Sweeney  ordered  his 
men  to  dig  in  and  wait.  They  were  still  full  of  spirit 
and  vigor.  Major  Donovan  tells  of  the  impression  made 
on  him  by  a  New  York  High  School  boy  who  carried  his 
messages  under  fire  with  a  cigarette  nonchalantly  drooping 
from  his  lip,  coming  and  going  as  if  he  were  an  A.  D.  T. 
messenger  on  Broadway.  It  was  Harold  Henderson.  Ed. 
Chamberlain,  whom  I  had  always  admired,  also  did  credit 
to  the  good  opinion  of  his  friends.  He  was  hit  across  the 
stomach  and  as  he  rose  to  go  back,  holding  the  ripped 
edges  together  to  keep  his  bowels  from  falling  out,  he  said 
to  Sweeney:    "Have  you  any  messages  for  the  rear?" 

It  was  some  hours  after  Lieutenant  Baldwin's  death  that 
Lieutenant  Henry  Kelley  arrived  with  Major  Donovan's 
orders  to  assume  command.  "Hec"  Kelley,  a  young  lawyer 
who  enlisted  as  a  private  in  B  Company  when  we  went  to 
the  Border,  was  never  one  to  take  good  care  of  himself 
in  a  fight.  He  lasted  just  half  an  hour  and  was  carried  back 
with  a  bad  wound  which  robbed  us  of  his  hearty,  courage- 
ous presence  for  the  rest  of  the  war.  Sweeney  and  the  rest 
stuck  it  out  till  morning.  Corporal  John  F.  Dennelly,  who 
had  left  his  country  newspaper  in  Long  Island  to  join 
the  69th,  spent  the  night  with  an  outpost  which  was  busy 


186  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

discouraging  the  nocturnal  efforts  of  the  Germans  to  erect 
barbed  wire  defenses  in  front  of  the  farm. 

In  the  morning  the  remnants  of  Company  A  withdrew  a 
shght  distance  down  the  valley  to  merge  with  Company 
B.  This  Company,  too,  had  had  its  losses.  One  platoon, 
under  Lieutenant  Wheatley,  was  in  line  with  Company  A, 
and  the  rest  of  them  were  close  behind.  Lieutenant  Wheat- 
ley  met  the  usual  fate  of  officers  in  this  battle  by  being 
wounded.  Timothy  McCarthy,  Denis  Bagley  and  Albert 
Lambert  were  killed  and  Phil  Schron  died  at  the  dressing- 
station.  It  .was  a  pleasant  surprise  to  everybody  in  the 
Company  that  their  gigantic  captain,  Tom  Reilley,  was  not 
hit  again,  as  he  walked  around  using  a  rifle  for  a  crutch 
and  exposing  his  massive  frame  to  the  enemy.  But  he  es- 
caped with  no  further  wounds. 

Company  A  failed  to  get  the  farm  that  day,  but  their 
dogged  persistence  helped  to  make  the  task  of  Company  C 
an  easier  one.  This  Company  was  led  by  Captain  Bootz 
with  Lieutenants  Irving,  Allen,  Betty,  Stone  and  Fried- 
lander.  They  advanced  with  their  right  near  to  the  brook 
and  their  left  on  the  slope  of  the  hill  towards  Seringes.  A 
machine  gun  on  the  south  edge  of  Bois  Colas  hampered 
them,  but  they  got  up  one  of  our  guns  with  Lieutenant  Da- 
vis and  Sergeant  John  O'Leary  and  soon  put  it  out  of  action. 
When  they  got  to  the  woods  they  beat  their  way  through 
them  cautiously,  expecting  every  moment  to  find  resistance, 
but  they  met  only  one  frightened  German  who  was  glad 
when  they  made  him  prisoner.  From  the  other  side  they 
could  see  a  disconcerted  enemy  dotting  the  slopes  in  front  of 
the  forest  of  Nesles.  The  riflemen  immediately  got  busy 
and  when  Lieutenants  Davis  and  Bell  came  up  with  the 
machine  guns,  commanded  by  Captain  Seibert,  the  field-gray 
uniforms  disappeared  under  their  fire. 

The  first  platoon,  under  Lieutenant  Allen,  had  harder 
going.  Its  task  was  to  cover  the  left  flank  as  the  line  ad- 
vanced, which  brought  the  men  along  the  top  of  the  hill, 
where  they   suffered   severely.      Sergeant   Crittenden   was 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  187 

killed  and  Louis  Torrey,  a  pious  lad,  Charles  Geary  also, 
and  Carlton  Ellis  and  R.  J.  Schwartz.  Sergeant  Dan  Garvey 
and  Frank  Daley,  John  J.  Murphy,  Patrick  Cronin  and  one 
of  the  Gordon  brothers  were  fatally  wounded  and  carried 
off  the  field.  Harry  McAllister  was  badly  wounded.  Big, 
impulsive  Mike  Cooney  carried  him  down  through  a  rain  of 
fire  to  the  bottom  and  then  went  back  through  it  to  get 
his  rifle.  James  Allen  lay  out  on  the  hill  moaning.  Harry 
Llorgan  started  up  to  get  him  but  was  killed  before  reaching 
him.  Thomas  O'Connor  crept  up  cautiously  and  coolly. 
He  was  stooping  to  pick  him  up  when  a  bullet  struck  him 
and  he  fell  on  the  body  of  his  comrade.  Nothing  daunted, 
Michael  Ruane  and  William  McCarthy  made  their  way  up 
that  hill  of  death  and  carried  down  their  wounded  comrade. 
Both  Allen  and  McAllister  afterwards  died  of  their  wounds. 

The  biggest  price  paid  for  the  capture  of  Bois  Colas  was 
when  the  courageous  soldier  and  trusted  leader.  Captain 
Henry  Bootz,  was  put  out  of  action  by  a  bullet  which 
passed  through  his  chest  from  side  to  side.  He  had  a  wound 
which  would  have  killed  an  ordinary  man,  but  he  merely 
grinned,  took  his  pipe  which  he  used  in  action  to  signal  to 
his  men  and  threw  it  to  Lieutenant  Betty,  saying:  "Here, 
son,  I  won't  need  this  for  a  while."  He  started  back,  fol- 
lowed by  his  faithful  orderly,  Michael  Sypoula,  better 
known  as  "Zip,"  who  had  gotten  a  wound  himself  and  was 
happy  that  he  had  a  reason  for  sticking  to  his  beloved  Cap- 
tain. First  Sergeant  Gene  Halpin  and  Maguire  assisted 
Captain  Bootz  to  the  rear.  Lieutenant  Friedlander  had  also 
received  a  dangerous  face  wound  and  had  been  carried  off 
the  field  by  Austin  McSweeney  of  the  Headquarters  Com- 
pany. 

Major  Donovan,  never  happy  unless  in  the  middle  of 
things,  had  gone  up  the  bed  of  the  brook  so  as  to  keep 
ahead  of  the  advance  of  C  on  the  left  and  A  on  the  right. 
Lieutenant  Ames,  his  Adjutant,  was  with  him,  led  by  de- 
votion as  well  as  duty,  for  the  Major  was  his  ideal  leader. 
They  lay  half  in  the  brook,  resting  on  the  bank,  when  a 


188  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

sniper's  bullet  from  the  farm  yard  whizzed  past  Dono- 
van's ear  and  struck  Ames  in  the  head,  liberating  for  larger 
purposes  a  singularly  attractive  and  chivalrous  soul. 

Lieutenant  Connelly  tells  of  coming  up  with  Sergeant 
Tom  O'Malley  and  Corporal  Gribbon  to  receive  orders  from 
the  Major  about  taking  over  the  line  from  Company  C. 
He  did  not  know  just  where  to  find  him  until  he  met  Bootz 
going  down  the  brook  bed  with  his  faithful  attendants. 
Following  up  the  stream  he  found  Donovan  still  in  the 
w'ater  with  Ames's  body  by  his  side.  The  Major  also  had 
received  a  bullet  wound  in  the  hand.  Nearby,  Pete  Gilles- 
pie, whose  machine  gun  was  out  of  order,  was  absorbed 
in  the  game  of  getting  the  sniper  who  had  killed  the  Lieu- 
tenant. All  stopped  to  watch  him  and  his  rifle.  Pete  settled 
down,  intent  on  a  dead  horse  near  the  farm.  Suddenly 
he  saw  something  had  moved  behind  it.  He  cuddled  his 
rifle,  waited  and  fired.  They  could  see  the  sniper  behind 
the  horse  half  rise,  then  drop.  The  beloved  Lieutenant  was 
avenged. 

The  day's  work  had  improved  the  situation  immensely. 
Control  of  Bois  Colas  gave  a  better  command  of  the  ter- 
rain northwards  to  the  edge  of  the  forest,  although  Bois 
Brule,  a  narrow  strip  of  woods  which  lay  between,  was  still 
alive  with  machine  guns.  Meurcy  Farm  was  not  vet  occu- 
pied, but  its  capacity  for  being  troublesome  was  reduced  by 
its  being  outflanked  by  our  left.  Anderson's  battalion  held 
the  lower  slopes  of  the  hill  that  had  been  taken  by  the  third 
battalion  the  first  day,  and  kept  the  Germans  from  re- 
occupying  it  permanently.  Anderson  was  in  touch  with  the 
84th  Brigade  which  was  on  the  same  line  with  himself. 
The  lowas  and  part  of  the  Alabamas  had  taken  the  town 
of  Sergy.  It  was  a  tough  nut  to  crack,  and  took  all  the 
dash  of  the  Southerners  and  the  stubborn  persistence  of 
the  Westerners  to  conquer  and  hold  it.  The  elements  of 
the  regiment  on  our  immediate  right  delayed  their  ad- 
vance until  the  whole  brigade  was  in  a  position  to  move 
forward. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  189 

The  other  regiment  in  oiir  Brigade  made  a  fine  advance 
on  our  left.  The  2nd  BattaHon  passed  through  the  first,  and 
after  our  regiment  had  taken  Bois  Colas,  the  Ohios  could 
be  seen  pushing  up  to  the  road  running  from  Fere  en  Tar- 
denois  to  Meurcy  Farm.  To  co-operate  with  them  Major 
Donovan  sent  Lieutenant  Betty  with  what  was  left  of 
Company  C  (sixty-five  men)  to  move  with  their  flank, 
Company  D  holding  Bois  Colas  with  forty-two  men.  The 
Ohios  kept  advancing  and  by  nightfall  had  captured  the 
southern  half  of  Seringes  et  Nesles.  The  upper  portion 
which  curved  over  to  the  top  of  our  valley  was  not  occupied 
until  the  German  retreat  had  begun. 

The  situation  was  set  for  a  further  advance.  Headquar- 
ters at  regiment,  brigade,  and  division  were  busy  preparing 
for  it  and  the  Artillery  were  ready  to  co-operate.  They 
had  been  shelling  Bois  Brule  just  in  front  of  us,  and  the 
upper  edge  of  Seringes  et  Nesles  and  the  edge  of  the  forest 
all  day.  Telephone  lines  had  been  stretched  to  the  front 
by  the  117th  Signal  Battalion  and  our  own  signal  section  of 
Headquarters  Company. 

These  were  exceedingly  busy  days  at  Colonel  McCoy's 
P.  C,  for  at  last  there  was  a  spot  that  one  could  dignify 
with  the  title  of  Post  of  Command.  The  first  day  of  the 
battle  there  had  been  three  or  four  posts  in  succession.  On 
Saturday  evening  Colonel  McCoy  was  in  the  Chateau  de 
Fere,  but  when  he  got  orders  for  his  regiment  to  make 
the  attack  he  went  forward  with  them  himself  to  join  Mc- 
Kenna  near  the  river.  When  the  battalion  went  over  he 
set  up  his  headquarters  right  there  in  a  shallow  trench  on 
the  exposed  river  slope.  It  seemed  no  place  for  a  com- 
manding officer  on  whom  so  much  had  to  depend,  but  he 
made  up  his  mind  that  it  was  his  place  to  be  where  he  could 
view  the  battle  himself,  as  there  was  no  speedy  way  for  him 
to  get  information,  and  the  immediate  decision  concerning 
the  actions  and  fate  of  his  men  would  rest  largely  on  his 
own  judgment.  These  were  his  reasons;  but  there  is  al- 
ways a  good  deal  of  the  element  of  personality  back  of 


190  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

anybody's  reasons.  And  Frank  R.  McCoy,  soldier  of  five 
campaigns,  would  naturally  see  the  force  of  reasons  which 
brought  him  as  close  as  possible  to  the  firing,  line.  The 
Germans  began  to  argue  the  point  in  their  usual  violent 
way,  but  the  Colonel  remained  unconvinced. 

Lieutenant  Rerat  was  wounded  slightly  in  that  hole,  and 
many  men  hurt  around  it.  Finally  Captain  Hurley  was 
badly  wounded  while  reporting  to  his  Chief,  and  the  Staff 
united  with  the  Germans  in  arguing  that  it  was  not  the 
best  place  to  do  regimental  business.  So  Colonel  McCoy 
brought  them  back  a  ways  to  a  sunken  road  that  ran  across 
the  town.  Here  the  shelling  pursued  them  and  Lieutenant 
B.  B.  Kane,  a  fine,  manly  fellow,  received  a  mortal  wound 
from  a  shell  that  exploded  a  few  feet  from  where  he  was 
standing  in  a  group  around  the  Colonel. 

Meanwhile  the  reliable  Captain  ^lichael  J.  Walsh  had 
been  scouring  the  town  for  a  suitable  place,  and  had  found 
one  in  the  cellar  of  a  house  still  nearer  the  lines,  but  acces- 
sible to  messengers  from  the  orchards  on  the  east,  thus 
obviating  the  trip  through  Dead  Man's  Curve. 

On  the  morning  of  the  29th  Colonel  McCoy  with  Lieu- 
tenant Colonel  Mitchell  went  up  to  look  over  the  whole  sit- 
uation and  consult  with  Donovan  and  Anderson.  The  decks 
were  now  cleared  for  a  battle.  The  telephone  was  in  to  the 
front  line,  to  the  Brigade  Post  of  Command,  and  to  the 
Artillery.  There  w^as  a  chance  for  a  commanding  officer 
to  be  of  real  service  to  the  Battalion  Commanders.  With 
the  telephone  to  the  front  and  rear  at  his  elbow,  he  had 
the  strings  in  his  hands,  and  he  certainly  kept  pulling  those 
strings  day  and  night.  A  message  would  come  in  from  an 
O,  P.  (Observation  Post)  where  Captain  Elmer  and  Cor- 
poral Bob  Lee  w^ere  on  the  watch :  "Shells  needed  on  ma- 
chine gun  nests  at  crest  of  hill  195.45-274.05  to  196. i- 
274.5."  Or  one  from  Donovan :  "Important  to  shell  Bois 
Brule,  where  forty  machine  gun  emplacements  are  re- 
ported." And  Lieutenant  Weaver,  a  smart  youngster  from 
the  151st  Field  Artillery,  would  be  put  on  the  job  in  a  sec- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  191 

ond.  Or  it  might  be  a  message  of  the  Colonel  to  General 
Lenihan  in  response  to  a  call  from  Donovan :  "Cut  out  fire 
on  neck  of  woods  south  of  Bois  Brule.  It  is  endangering 
our  Infantry  in  Bois  Colas."  Night  and  day  that  tele- 
phone was  working,  receiving  news  from  the  front,  ef- 
fecting co-operation  with  neighboring  regiments  or  sending 
back  requests  for  barrages,  counter-battery  work,  food  sup- 
plies, ammunition,  ambulances,  air  service.  Soldiers  in  the 
line  never  fully  realize  how  much  their  lives,  and  victory, 
which  is  more  to  them  than  their  lives,  depend  on  the  alert- 
ness and  intelligence  of  those  in  command. 

It  was  an  interesting  group  at  the  regimental  P.  C, 
McCoy  with  his  spare  soldierly  figure  and  his  keen  sol- 
dierly face,  radiant  with  the  joy  of  action  and  the  prospects 
of  victory,  always  a  stimulus  to  those  who  might  be  down- 
hearted. For  the  first  day,  as  operations  officer,  he  had 
George  IMcAdie,  patient,  painstaking  and  enduring,  until  the 
order  came,  less  endurable  to  him  than  an  enemy  bullet,  that 
he  should  proceed  forthwith  for  duty  at  a  home  station. 
A  hard  sentence  for  a  bom  soldier  in  the  middle  of  a  battle. 
And  succeeding  him  Merle-Smith,  just  come  out  of  the  car- 
nage, with  an  untidy  bandage  around  his  wounded  arm,  but 
with  his  mind  set  only  on  his  job.  Alert  youngsters,  Lieu- 
tenants Rerat,  Seidelman,  Jim  Mangan,  Heinel  (afterwards 
wounded)  and  Preston,  with  Captain  Jack  Mangan  drifting 
in  occasionally  to  see  if  his  supplies  were  coming  up  satis- 
factorily. 

And  next  to  the  Colonel  was  one  big  personality  dominat- 
ing all ;  the  rugged  personality  of  Captain  Michael  J.  Walsh, 
old  soldier  and  solid  man.  He  was  disgusted  with  his  part 
in  the  conflict.  "I  came  out  here  to  be  a  soldier  and  I  am 
nothing  but  a  damn  room  orderly,"  he  growled.  But  who 
fed  the  hungry  fighting  men?  Captain  Michael  Walsh. 
Who  scoured  the  yards  of  houses  for  utensils  to  send  up 
the  food  to  them?  Captain  Michael  Walsh.  Who  saw 
that  the  ammunition  was  delivered  on  time  to  the  front 
line.    Once  more,  Captain  Walsh.    And  the  Colonel,  when 


192  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

there  was  a  task  of  real  importance  to  perform,  never 
delegated  it  to  the  bright  young  men ;  he  always  said  :  "Cap- 
tain Walsh  will  attend  to  that." 

The  principal  task  for  July  30th  was  assigned  to  the 
84th  Brigade.  They  were  to  try  to  get  forward  and  even  up 
the  line  on  our  right.  The  Ohios  were  to  hold  fast,  but 
Donovan  requested  to  take  advantage  of  the  forward  move- 
ment on  the  right  to  improve  our  position  with  reference 
to  Bois  Brule.  Company  C  was  still  in  line  west  of  Bois 
Colas  maintaining  our  connection  with  the  Ohios.  Com- 
pany D  was  at  the  upper  edge  of  this  woods  with  the  ma- 
chine gunners  under  Captain  Seibert,  Lieutenants  Doris, 
Davis  and  Bell.  Companies  B  and  A  were  dug  in  around 
the  approaches  to  the  farm.  Food  came  up  on  the  night  of 
the  29th  for  the  first  time.  The  men  were  all  hungry,  as 
their  reserve  rations  had  been  consumied  long  before.  Lieu- 
tenant Springer  had  been  sent  to  take  command  of  Com- 
pany A,  succeeding  Lieutenant  D'Aguerro,  who  had  been 
wounded  in  his  turn.  He  and  his  First  Sergeant,  Tom 
Sweeney,  were  sitting  on  the  edge  of  a  hole  preparing  to  en- 
joy a  can  of  corn  when  one  bullet  got  both  of  them.  They 
were  helped  back  to  the  dressing  station  and  Sergeant  Hig- 
ginson  took  comm.and.  The  affair  had  its  compensations. 
Higginson  and  young  Henderson  got  the  com. 

Major  Donovan's  Post  of  Command  was  a  hole  at  the 
southern  edge  of  Bois  Colas.  Lieutenant  Ames'  body  had 
been  brought  in  during  the  night  and  buried  nearby.  Ames' 
place  as  battalion  adjutant  was  filled  by  Sergeant  Joyce 
Kilmer,  whose  position  as  Sergeant  of  the  Intelligence  Sec- 
tion would  naturally  have  entitled  him  to  a  place  nearer 
regimental  headquarters.  But  he  had  preferred  to  be  with 
a  battalion  in  the  field  and  had  chosen  Donovan's.  The 
Major  placed  great  reliance  on  his  coolness  and  intelligence 
and  kept  him  by  his  side.  That  suited  Joyce,  for  to  be  at 
Ala j or  Donovan's  side  in  a  battle  is  to  be  in  the  center  of 
activity  and  in  the  post  of  danger.  To  be  in  a  battle,  a 
battle  for  a  cause  that  had  his  full  devotion,  with  the  regi- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  193 

ment  he  loved,  under  a  leader  he  admired,  that  was  living  at 
the  top  of  his  being.  On  the  morning  of  the  30th  Major 
Donovan  went  forward  through  the  woods  to  look  over  the 
position.  Kilmer  followed,  unbidden.  He  lay  at  the  north 
edge  of  the  woods  looking  out  towards  the  enemy.  The 
Major  went  ahead,  but  Kilmer  did  not  follow.  Donovan 
returned  and  found  him  dead.  A  bullet  had  pierced  his 
brain.  His  body  was  carried  in  and  buried  by  the  side  of 
Ames.     God  rest  his  dear  and  gallant  soul. 

At  3  :30  that  afternoon  the  84th  Brigade  had  made  prog- 
ress, though  it  was  slow  and  difficult  going.  The  artillery 
was  doing  good  work  but  all  their  efforts  could  not  keep 
down  the  fire  of  the  German  Machine  Gunners.  The  grati- 
fying surprise  of  the  day  was  when  two  escadrilles  of 
friendly  planes  came  over.  Our  companies  in  the  line  had 
not  been  pushed  very  hard.  They  repelled  a  couple  of 
counter  attacks  on  their  position,  and  the  machine  gun- 
ners were  on  the  alert  to  fire  whenever  our  artillery  work  on 
Bois  Brule  started  the  Germans  running. 

Donovan  was  to  move  forward  when  the  progress  of 
the  84th  Brigade  brought  them  abreast  of  him.  But  regi- 
ments, brigades,  and  it  was  said,  divisions,  sloped  away  to 
the  right  like  steps  of  stairs,  and  each  was  hanging  back  for 
the  others  to  come  up.  So  Major  Donovan  insisted  on 
making  a  try  for  Bois  Brule  without  waiting  for  any 
help  except  what  our  Brigade  would  give.  Colonel  Hough 
was  perfectly  willing  to  back  him  up.  So  Lieutenant  Con- 
nelly Math  Company  D  moved  out  to  the  attack. 

It  was  the  pitiful  remnant  of  a  company,  one  officer  and 
forty-two  men  instead  of  the  six  officers  and  two  hundred 
and  fifty  men  who  formerly  swung  along  like  an  old  tim.e 
battalion  in  the  parades  on  the  Hempstead  Plains.  But 
the  few  who  were  left  were  inured  to  danger  by  patrols 
and  raids  and  battles,  and  they  were  ready  for  anything. 
The  ground  in  front  was  rough  and  hummocky  for  two 
hundred  yards,  and  then  a  double  row  of  trees  led  up  to  the 
Bois  Brule.    At  the  right  it  sloped  off  to  the  brook  where 


194  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

it  ran  past  Meurcy  Farm.  Sergeant  Dick  O'Neill  was  to 
cover  the  ground  in  front  with  fifteen  men,  including  Mas- 
terson,  Peterson,  Bedient,  Gugliere,  McGee,  McAree,  Stod- 
dard, Lord,  and  Edward  Moran. 

Lieutenant  Cook  led  a  smaller  number  of  picked  men  to 
work  to  the  right  and  up  the  bed  of  the  brook,  cooperating 
with  Companies  A  and  B  working  around  the  farm.  In 
his  command  were  John  Gribbon,  his  red  head  an  oriflamme 
of  war;  Colton  Bingham,  the  fighting  nephew  of  the  gentle 
Bishop  of  Buffalo,  John  Curtin,  a  tall  young  Irishman  who 
afterwards  became  regimental  standard  bearer,  Tommy 
Blake,  later  Lieutenant  Blake,  and  the  steadiest  of  riflemen, 
Pat  McDonough.  Lieutenant  Connelly  came  in  the  rear  of 
his  skirmish  line  where  he  could  control  their  movements. 
With  him  were  his  First  Sergeants  Edward  Geaney,  Ser^ 
geant  Hubert  Murray,  Corporal  John  F.  Moran  and  others. 
Tom  O'Malley  had  already  been  wounded. 

Some  distance  out  there  was  a  deep,  irregular  sand  pit. 
O'Neill,  carefully  rounding  the  corner  of  it,  suddenly  saw 
right  under  his  eyes  a  body  of  about  25  Germans.  He 
uttered  a  shout  of  warning  and  jumped  into  the  midst  of 
them  with  his  pistol  cracking.  He  had  shot  down  three  Ger- 
mans before  they  realized  what  was  happening,  and  pro- 
duced great  confusion  amongst  them.  Some  rushed  to  the 
other  side  of  the  pit  while  others  began  firing  at  O'Neill, 
who  kept  firing  after  he  was  hit,  and  when  finally  carried 
back  to  the  dressing  station  had  seven  bullets  in  him.  The 
Germans  who  had  run  across  the  sand  pit  found  themselves 
face  to  face  with  Lieutenant  Connelly  and  his  little  group. 
What  followed  was  as  sudden,  as  confused  in  plan,  and  as 
resolute  in  spirit  as  the  action  around  the  log  house  in 
Stevenson's  Treasure  Island.  The  Company  D  men  came 
running  from  all  sides  to  take  part  in  the  fighting.  On  our 
side  Connelly  was  hit;  also  Geaney,  Gribbon  and  McDon- 
ough. And  James  J.  Gugliere,  Paul  McGee,  Louis  Peterson 
and  Rollie  Bedient  were  killed.  This  all  happened  in  an  in- 
stant.   The  Germans  paid  a  fearful  price  for  it.    Those  that 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  195 

v/ere  left  scrambled  out  of  the  pit  to  flee  in  the  direction  of 
their  own  forces.  There  they  saw  the  advance  elements  of 
O'Neill's  section  running  back  toward  them,  and  they  turned 
toward  Bois  Colas  at  a  headlong  gait.  The  cry  went  up 
that  a  counter  attack  was  coming.  Colonel  Hough  saw  it 
and  telephoned  to  our  headquarters.  Anderson  heard  back 
in  the  woods  and  stormed  up  from  the  support  with  re- 
inforcements. Our  machine-guns  were  turned  on  the  ad- 
vancing Germans ;  and  the  advent  of  a  few  bedraggled  pris- 
oners in  dirty  field  gray  uniforms  let  the  rear  line  see  that 
the  counter-attack  was  a  myth.  The  whole  business  was 
over  in  a  few  minutes. 

But  the  Germans  in  Bois  Brule  were  again  at  work 
sweeping  the  ground  with  their  bullets  and  it  was  under 
fierce  fire  that  John  Burke,  Joe  Lynch,  McAuliffe,  Bing- 
ham and  Blake  carried  in  Lieutenant  Connelly  and  the  other 
wounded.  Sergeant  JMurray  took  command  and  kept  the 
survivors  going  forward  until  they  had  outposts  estab- 
lished in  the  approaches  to  Bois  Brule. 

Besides  those  already  mentioned.  Company  D  lost,  killed 
in  these  three  days,  Corporal  Frank  Fall,  Privates  George 
Johnson,  Terance  McAree,  John  McCormick,  Michael  Ro- 
manuk,  Harvey  J.  Venneman,  Robert  Luff,  Frank  J.  Lack- 
ner,  Attilio  Manfredi,  Edward  G.  Coxe,  John  Dolan  and  the 
senior  of  the  two  Michael  J.  Sheas,  who  died  of  his  wounds. 

July  31st  was  a  day  of  comparative  quiet.  The  longer 
the  struggle  lasted  the  more  it  was  borne  in  upon  the  Lords 
of  High  Decision  that  the  ousting  of  the  enemy  from  their 
position  was  a  matter  for  artillery.  It  was  the  first  time 
we  had  the  opportunity  to  observe  with  reluctant  admiration 
the  German  development  of  the  use  of  the  machine  gun  in 
defensive  warfare.  To  send  infantry  in  under  the  intense 
fire  of  their  numerous  guns  was  like  feeding  paper  to  a 
flame.  Our  artillery,  however,  was  good, — none  better 
in  the  whole  war,  we  confidently  assert,  and  we  waited  with 
assurance  for  them  to  reduce  the  resistance.  H  our  air  serv- 
ice were  sufficiently  developed  to  give  them  good  photo- 


196  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

graphs  of  positions,  and  to  register  their  fire,  we  felt  sure 
that  the  Infantry  would  soon  be  in  a  position  to  make  short 
work  of  enemy  opposition. 

That  day  we  had  our  first  experience  of  another  auxilliary 
arm.  The  day  before  there  landed  at  the  regimental  P.  C. 
a  section  of  our  30th  Engineers,  our  Gas  and  Flame  regi- 
ment. With  them  there  was  an  Australian  officer  with  a 
name  that  would  qualify  him  for  the  69th,  and  a  young 
lieutenant  who,  we  discovered  after  he  was  killed,  was  a  son 
of  the  famous  baseball  manager,  Ned  Hanlan  of  Baltimore. 
They  came  out  with  their  men  on  the  31st  and  threw  over 
thermite  and  smoke  bombs  on  Bois  Brule  and  Meurcy  Farm. 
Under  their  protection  Company  D  occupied  the  woods. 

Company  A,  under  Lieutenant  Stone,  finally  took  pos- 
session of  the  Farm.  The  first  attempt  failed.  A  patrol 
led  by  Corporal  Sidney  Clark  started  up  but  four  men  were 
hit  in  the  first  three  minutes,  Michaels  dying  of  his  wounds. 
Another  attempt  was  made  in  the  evening  and  the  farm 
was  occupied  by  a  patrol  under  Corporals  John  Dennelly 
and  Van  Arsdale. 

It  was  evident  that  the  enemy's  resistance  was  weaken- 
ing, and  that  it  would  be  a  matter  of  a  very  short  period 
before  he  would  retreat  to  his  next  line  of  defence.  On 
August  1st  the  3rd  Battalion  relieved  the  ist  in  line.  Com- 
pany M  had  had  serious  losses  after  being  drawn  out  from 
the  line  on  July  28th,  as  the  battalion  had  been  bombed 
in  its  reserve  position  at  the  sunken  road,  and  the  Company 
had  sufifered  other  losses  in  a  ration  detail  which  was  caught 
out  under  a  heavy  fire.  Of  its  officers,  Lieutenant  Hunt 
Warner  was  badly  wounded;  Lieutenant  Collier  was 
wounded  but  stuck  to  his  post.  Edward  Brennan,  Hugh 
Kaiser,  Alfred  Schneider  and  Johnnie  Madden  were  killed 
and  Sergeant  Nicholson  wounded.  Captain  Meaney  and 
Lieutenants  Mclntyre  and  Bunnell  escaped  uninjured.  Lieu- 
tenant Mclntyre  was  blown  into  the  Ourcq  by  the  concus- 
sion of  a  shell,  but  he  stuck  to  his  task  till  he  finished  it. 

Company  K  also  suffered  further  disaster  while  in  re- 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  197 

serve,  and  Sergeants  Peter  Crotty  and  Bernard  McElroy, 
who  had  done  prodigious  deeds  in  action,  received  mortal 
wounds ;  and  also  William  Bergen,  who  did  more  work 
as  a  stretcher  bearer  than  any  other  man  I  have  ever  seen 
in  a  battle.  Louis  Gilbert  and  Everett  Seymour  of  Com- 
pany L  were  killed  in  the  same  bombardment  and  Sam  Klo- 
senberg  fatally  wounded. 

In  fact,  the  town  of  Villers  sur  Fere  was  throughout  the 
action  a  part  of  the  battlefield.  Its  church  square  at  the 
northern  end  was  not  more  than  a  thousand  yards  from 
the  place  of  actual  conflict.  The  front  line  forces  were  at 
times  too  near  each  other  to  allow  artillery  fire  from  either 
side,  as  each  side  had  to  avoid  the  danger  of  shelling  its 
own  infantry — an  event  which  is  always  most  disastrous  to 
the  morale  of  troops.  But  the  approaches  to  Villers  sur 
Fere  lay  under  the  eyes  of  the  enemy,  and  they  could  see 
a  constant  stream  of  liaison  men,  litter  bearers,  hobbling 
■wounded,  and  food  and  ammunition  carriers  going  in  by  the 
entrance  to  its  one  street.  They  knew  it  to  be  the  center 
of  our  web  so  they  very  wisely  concentrated  most  of  their 
fire  upon  it  and  especially  on  the  square  which  opened  out 
after  the  short  narrow  northern  entrance  of  Dead  Man's 
Curve.  Even  before  dawn  they  had  been  raking  its  streets 
as  a  natural  mode  of  approach  of  an  oncoming  enemy,  kill- 
ing and  wounding  a  large  number  of  men.  Indeed  nearly 
one-third  of  those  who  lost  their  lives  in  this  action  re- 
ceived their  death  wounds  from  shell  fire  in  and  around 
Villers  sur  Fere. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  July  28th,  Lieutenant  Joseph  J. 
Kilcourse,  Medical  Officer  attached  to  the  Third  Battalion, 
had  opened  his  aid  post  in  the  schoolhouse  facing  on  the 
square,  and  the  development  of  the  battle  soon  made  it  the 
regimental  dressing  station.  The  schoolhouse  quickly 
filled  up  with  wounded.  A  constant  stream  of  limping  men, 
of  men  with  bandages  around  their  heads  or  with  arms 
carried  in  rough  slings,  of  men  borne  on  rude  litters,  were 
coming  into  town  along  the  narrow  entrance.     No  ambu- 


198  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

lances  had  gotten  through  and  there  were  no  directions  as 
to  where  a  triage  could  be  found.  The  courtyard  in  front 
of  the  hospital  was  filled  with  "walking  cases,"  discussing 
the  battle  with  that  cheerfulness  which  is  always  character- 
istic of  soldiers  who  are  not  fatally  wounded.  A  menacing 
whiz  came  through  the  air  and  a  shell  fell  amongst  them, 
followed  by  two  others,  one  of  which  struck  the  wall  and 
spattered  the  litter  cases  with  plaster  and  broken  bricks. 
The  survivors  in  the  yard  scattered  in  all  directions  but 
nine  of  them  lay  quivering  or  motionless.  Lieutenant  Kil- 
course  ran  out  sobbing  and  swearing  and  working  like  mad 
to  save  his  patients  from  further  harm.  Those  who  could 
walk  were  started  down  the  road  towards  the  Chateau  de 
Foret  in  the  hope  of  being  picked  up  by  an  ambulance  or 
truck.  Inside  the  hospital  nobody  was  seriously  hurt,  but 
the  men  of  the  Sanitary  Detachment  labored  energetically  to 
get  them  into  places  of  comparative  safety.  These  were 
Sergeant  ist  Class  William  Helgers,  James  Mason,  James 
McCormack,  Ferraro,  Planeta,  Larsen  and  Daly. 

Before  long,  Lieutenants  Lyttle,  Martin,  Mitchell  and 
Lawrence  had  arrived,  and  the  wounded  received  all  the 
attention  they  could  be  given  with  the  facilities  at  hand. 
But  the  worst  cases  lay  there  till  the  next  morning  before 
they  could  be  evacuated.  They  bore  their  sufferings  with 
cheerful  fortitude,  their  thoughts  being  for  others.  Father 
Hanley  was  sore  because  he  had  been  put  out  so  soon.  Ser- 
geant John  Donahue's  thoughts  were  with  his  beloved 
Company  L;  Tommy  Delaney,  an  innocent  lovable  boy, 
talked  of  his  mother  and  what  a  good  son  to  her  he  had 
planned  to  be  if  he  had  lived,  and  Tom  Mansfield,  with  his 
leg  shattered,  was  full  of  Irish  pride  that  he  had  been  given 
a  chance  to  be  in  a  big  battle  with  the  "Ould  Rigiment." 

Headquarters  Company  was  located  in  town  in  the  shat- 
tered houses  and  stables  but  most  of  its  sections  had  to 
take  a  frequent  part  in  field  operations.  The  signal  section, 
under  Lieutenant  James  Mangan,  labored  at  great  risk  in 
putting  down  the  wires  for  connection  with  the  front  line 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  199 

on  the  night  of  July  28th.  Sergeant  Beall,  Corporal  Bro- 
chen  and  Privates  J.  McCabe,  Kirwin  and  Olson  kept  the 
lines  intact,  while  the  remainder  of  the  platoon  did  great 
service  as  ammunition  bearers.  The  intelligence  section 
under  Captain  Elmer  had  an  observation  post  100  yards 
northwest  of  Villers  sur  Fere  which  did  excellent  work  in 
reporting  machine  gun  nests  and  the  direction  of  fire  of 
enemy  artillery,  Dick  Larned  acted  as  Chief  of  Scouts  with 
the  Third  Battalion  and  Joyce  Kilmer  and  Levinson  with 
the  First  Battalion.  In  the  headquarters  section  little  Cor- 
poral Malone  w^as  on  the  job  day  and  night  with  his  run- 
ners.   Edward  Mulligan  of  this  section  was  killed. 

Coming  to  what  we  might  call  the  Infantry  Artillery,  the 
Stokes  mortar  platoon  rendered  excellent  service  through- 
out the  battle.  Two  sections  of  this  platoon  under  Ser- 
geants Jaeger  and  Fitzsimmons  took  up  the  advance  with 
the  Infantry  on  July  27th.  Early  Sunday  morning,  July 
28th,  an  infantry  patrol  drew  fire  from  enemy  machine  guns 
located  on  the  banks  of  the  Ourcq  river.  Major  McKenna 
called  for  one  trench  mortar,  and  a  gun  crew  in  charge  of 
Sergeant  Fitzsimmons  and  Corporal  Harvey  reported  and 
shelled  the  enemy  position  in  front  of  the  Ourcq.  At  three 
in  the  morning  Colonel  McCoy  ordered  a  barrage  to  be 
fired  by  the  four  guns  on  a  machine  gun  nest.  This  was 
done  and  then  the  men  waited  for  the  advance  of  the  In- 
fantry at  4:30.  When  the  first  wave  started  to  cross  the 
Ourcq  a  barrage  was  laid  down  until  the  troops  had  crossed 
the  river  and  were  ascending  the  height  beyond  it.  The 
men  then  followed  the  advance  as  far  as  the  river  when 
they  were  ordered  back  to  their  position  of  reserve  in  the 
village.  It  was  during  this  advance  that  John  Perry,  a  fine 
youth,  received  the  wound  which  later  caused  his  death. 

On  July  29th,  one  section  under  Lieutenant  Frank  Mc- 
Namara  and  Sergeant  Cudmore,  entered  the  lines  to  sup- 
port the  first  battalion.  This  section  fired  an  effective  bar- 
rage when  the  enemy  attempted  a  counter-attack.  During 
this  action  Private  Malcolm  Robertson  was  killed  by  an 


200  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

enemy  shell  and  Sergeant  Cudmore  and  F.  Gan^ey  were 
wounded.  On  August  ist  at  two  in  the  afternoon  one  gun 
was  set  up  in  front  of  the  woods  facing  Meurcy  Farm. 
Despite  the  fact  that  enemy  aeroplanes  constantly  harassed 
them,  machine  gim  nests  in  and  about  Meurcy  Farm  were 
shelled  with  good  results.  After  two  hours  work  the  men 
were  driven  to  cover  by  enemy  machine  guns,  Corporal 
Clark  and  Private  Casey  receiving  severe  wounds.  The 
platoon  was  relieved  on  August  2nd  and  lent  their  aid  to  the 
burying  of  the  dead. 

The  37  mm.  guns,  commonly  known  as  the  one-pound- 
ers did  excellent  work,  the  small  platoon  paying  a  heavy 
price  in  losses.  On  July  28th,  three  members  of  the  crew 
were  killed  with  one  shell  in  the  village  square  as  they  were 
advancing  v^ath  their  gun — Cornelius  Grauer,  Joseph 
Becker,  Frank  Guida — Grauer,  a  youngster  of  seventeen, 
being  a  particular  favorite  with  everybody  that  knew  him. 
On  July  30th  the  platoon  took  part  in  the  attack  on  Meurcy 
Farm.  During  the  operations  the  crew  were  caught  in  a 
box  barrage  by  the  enemy  artillery  and  serious  wounds  were 
sustained  by  Sergeant  Willemin,  who  was  in  command,  and 
Privates  Monohan,  B.  J.  McLaughlin,  John  Seifried  and 
John  Kelly.  Although  the  crew  was  almost  entirely  wiped 
out,  the  gun  was  kept  in  action  by  Corporal  Charlie  Lester 
and  Private  Berry.  Another  gun  crew  under  command  of 
Lieutenant  Joseph  O'Donohue  was  kept  going  all  morning 
and  did  great  execution.  Of  this  crew  John  C.  McLaughlin 
was  killed  while  firing  his  gun. 

The  members  of  the  Company  whose  duties  detained 
them  in  the  village  worked  for  the  interest  of  the  whole 
regiment  in  positions  almost  equally  exposed  with  those 
in  the  front  line.  Captain  Walsh,  a  soldier  of  many  cam- 
paigns, knew  what  the  men  in  line  needed  was  not  encour- 
agement (he  took  it  for  granted  that  every  man  had  cour- 
age) nor  sympathy  (his  own  feeling  was  one  of  envy  of 
them),  but  ammunition  and  food.  His  own  company  kitchen 
worked  night  and  day  to  feed  everybody  who  came  into 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  201 

town  on  any  business.  Mess  Sergeant  Louis  Goldstein  and 
Cooks  John  Wilker  and  Leo  Maher,  moved  by  his  example, 
set  up  their  kitchen  under  an  arch  just  off  the  square  and 
fed  800  men  a  day  while  the  engagement  lasted. 

That  square  was  an  interesting  sight  throughout  the  bat- 
tle. Men  drifted  in,  singly  or  in  twos  or  in  parties,  fresh 
from  scenes  of  death.  Liaison  men,  ammunition  details,  lit- 
ter bearers  carrying  stretchers  dripping  blood.  They  were 
fresh  from  the  field  where  bullets  were  flying.  They  had 
been  forced  to  drop  on  their  faces  as  they  crossed  the  val- 
ley under  fire.  They  had  scurried  around  Dead  Man's 
Curve  and  they  were  still  only  about  1,000  yards  from  the 
fighting,  with  shells  still  screaming  in  the  air  above  their 
heads  and  enemy  planes  forcing  them  to  scuttle  out  of 
sight,  but  they  were  not  breathless  or  anxious  or  excited. 
They  borrowed  the  "makings,"  or  got  a  cup  of  coffee  from 
John  Wilker  and  stole  a  few  minutes  to  gossip  about  the 
fight  or  to  relate  something  that  struck  them  as  interest- 
ing. A  year  ago  if  one  lone  maniac  had  been  lying  in  Cen- 
tral Park  taking  pot  shots  at  passers-by  going  along  Fifth 
Avenue  they  would  have  run  down  a  side  street  calling  for 
the  Police,  would  have  gotten  home  excited  and  out  of 
breath,  and  would  have  stood  outside  of  the  church  the 
next  Sunday  after  ten  o'clock  Mass  to  tell  all  their  friends 
what  an  adventure  they  had  had. 

It  was  magnificent,  but  it  w^as  not  war.  Especially  with 
the  aeroplanes  overhead.  Those  German  aeroplanes — they 
circled  over  our  troops  in  line,  over  our  men  in  the  rear. 
Colonel  McCoy  sent  word  to  inquire  about  the  aeroplanes 
that  were  promised  us.  General  Lenihan  wanted  to  know. 
General  Menoher  sent  orders ;  entreated.  But  the  only  ones 
we  could  see  had  the  black  Maltese  cross — the  same  old 
story. 

There  was  but  one  thing  to  do  if  we  would  prevent  a  re- 
currence of  the  catastrophe  which  had  already  occurred  at 
the  hospital  in  that  same  square.  And  that  was  to  prevent 
the  men  from  gathering  there.    The  kitchen  was  moved  to 


202  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

a  less  exposed  spot.  This  was  done  to  draw  the  men  away 
from  the  square  and  not  from  any  sense  of  timidity  on  the 
part  of  its  operatives.  On  the  contrary  they  had  made  a 
bold  attempt  to  get  that  kitchen  up  to  the  front  line.  On 
the  night  of  July  29th  the  bowld  Jim  Collintine  had  hitched 
his  trusty  mules  to  the  beloved  goulash  wagon  and  driven 
it  right  up  to  the  Ourcq.  When  they  found  they  could  not 
cross,  the  Mess  Sergeant  and  cooks  unloaded  its  contents 
for  the  men  in  line.  Mooney  of  Company  A  tried  the  same 
thing,  and,  when  the  river  stopped  him,  sent  the  food  up 
on  litters. 

One  of  the  officers  whose  duties  kept  him  near  the  hos- 
pital appointed  himself  as  Police  Officer  in  addition  to  his 
other  duties,  to  keep  the  men  under  cover.  On  the  second 
day  of  the  fight  he  saw  a  tousled  looking  soldier  without 
hat  or  rifle  coming  from  a  barn. 

"What  outfit  do  you  belong  to?" 

"I  belong  to  the  165th  Infantry,  sir." 

"What  are  you  doing  here?" 

*T  came  in  last  night  with  an  ammunition  detail  and  we 
got  scattered  under  shell  fire  and  I  crawled  into  the  barn." 

"Yes,  you  slept  there  all  night  and  let  the  other  fellows 
do  your  work.  You  must  be  a  new  man.  But  I  see  you 
have  a  service  stripe." 

"Well,  I  am  new  in  the  regiment  and  I  don't  belong  in 
this  game.  I  was  in  the  S.  O.  S.  and  they  sent  me  up  here 
as  a  replacement  after  I  got  into  the  hospital." 

"Where  is  your  rifle." 

"I  lost  it  and  it  ain't  no  good  to  me  anyway  cause  I  don't 
know  anything  about  it,  and  I  can't  see  good  anyway." 

The  situation  was  too  much  for  the  officer  and,  like  every- 
one else  in  emergency,  his  mind  turned  to  Captain  Walsh. 

"Go  down  that  road  about  forty  yards  and  you  will  see  a 
farm  yard  with  soldiers  in  it  and  ask  for  Captain  Walsh. 
Tell  him  I  sent  you  and  tell  him  the  story  you  gave  me." 

The  hatless  soldier  obeyed  very  willingly  because  the 
street  led  towards  the  rear.     An  hour  later  Captain  Mike 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  203 

breezed  into  the  square  and  came  over  to  the  officer  with 
the  demand, 

"Who  was  that  bird  you  sent  me?" 

"What  did  you  do  with  him,  Mike?" 

"What  did  I  do  with  him.  I  salvaged  him  a  nice  new 
rifle,  strapped  two  bandoHers  around  him,  led  him  gently 
out  into  the  street,  faced  him  north  and  said,  'Keep  right 
on  going  in  that  direction  until  you  see  a  Dutchman  and 
when  you  see  him  shoot  him  for  me.'  And  I  gave  him  a 
good  start  with  my  boot  and  by  the  way  he  made  his  get- 
away I'll  bet  he's  going  yet." 

The  Commander  of  our  Sanitary  Detachment  was  Cap- 
tain Wm.  B.  Hudson,  who  had  been  assigned  to  us  from 
the  117th  Sanitary  Train  when  Major  Lawrence  was  called 
to  Division  Headquarters.  On  July  28th,  Captain  Hudson 
had  taken  his  post  at  the  Chateau  de  Foret,  General  Leni- 
han's  Headquarters,  most  of  which  the  General  had  given 
over  for  the  accommodation  of  the  wounded  who  had  man- 
aged to  get  back  that  far.  Here,  too,  the  wounded  men  met 
with  fresh  disaster.  A  German  aeroplane  dropped  bombs 
in  the  courtyard  and  killed  seven  men,  including  Sergeant 
Brogan  of  Company  B,  one  of  the  best  men  we  had. 

On  the  next  day  Captain  Hudson  started  to  look  for  a 
better  place  for  the  wounded  in  Villers  sur  Fere,  accompa- 
nied by  the  ever-faithful  Jewett,  the  "Y"  athletic  instruc- 
tor. He  was  standing  in  the  door  of  the  place  he  had  se- 
lected when  an  enemy  gas  shell  came  over  and  a  fragment 
of  it  hit  him  full  in  the  chest,  killing  him  instantly. 

We  buried  him  sadly  by  the  cemetery  wall  where  already 
too  many  of  our  men  were  lying  in  their  last  long  sleep. 

In  the  town  also  we  buried  many  who  were  killed  by 
shell  fire  as  they  advanced  to  go  into  action  during  the  night 
of  the  27th-28th.  In  this  our  Machine  gunners  were  the 
greatest  sufferers;  almost  a  whole  platoon  was  wiped  out. 
A  shell  landed  in  the  midst  of  them,  creating  havoc.  The 
uninjured  rushed  boldly  to  succor  their  comrades,  when 
another  shell  and  still  another,  fell  in  the  same  spot,  scat- 


20i  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

tering  death  afresh.  Sergeant  Phil  Brooks  here  gave  up 
his  hfe  and  Ray  Nulty,  J.  R.  Keller,  H.  Van  Diezelski, 
Frank  Carlin,  G.  Foster  and  C.  G.  Sahlquist. 

Accompanying  Lieutenant  Connelly  on  his  mission  of  the 
morning  of  the  28th  was  the  Second  Platoon  of  our  Ma- 
chine Gun  Company  under  Lieutenant  Carter,  who  was 
wounded  during  the  action.*  The  Platoon  was  kept  to- 
gether by  Sergeants  Bruhn  and  Kerrigan,  and  Doherty,  and 
afterwards  went  through  the  whole  battle  with  our  First 
Battalion. 

While  the  first  battalion  was  lying  under  the  hill  during 
the  afternoon  of  the  28th  they  were  very  much  harrassed 
by  enemy  planes  which  came  across  flying  low  and  shoot- 
ing from  their  machine  guns  at  the  men  on  the  hill  and 
under  the  bank.  Here  Harry  Martenson  was  killed  and 
Hugh  Heaney  badly  wounded  and  carried  back  by  Ser- 
geant Devine.  Sergeant  Frank  Gardella  thought  it  was 
time  to  try  reprisals,  so  he  set  up  his  machine  gun  as  an 
anti-aircraft  weapon  and  began  blazing  away  at  fourteen 
planes  which  were  above  his  head  and  flying  low.  He  got 
a  line  on  two  planes  which  were  flying  one  above  the  other, 
and  by  a  lucky  shot  hit  the  pilot  of  the  upper  plane  which 
crashed  into  the  lower  one  and  both  came  tumbling  to 
earth  not  far  from  the  river,  their  crews  being  killed. 

When  Company  C  was  advancing  towards  Bois  Colas 

they  met  opposition  from  enemy  light  machine  guns  some 

of  which  were  operating  from  the  tree  tops.     Lieutenant 

Bell's  platoon,  Sergeants  Stephens  and  Gardella,  Corporals 

J.  McBride,  Paul  Fay  and  Williams  were  given  the  task  of 

dislodging  them.     They  carried  up  their  heavy  guns  on 

their  backs,  and  without  taking  time  to  set  them  up,  they 

made  use  of  them  as  if  they  were  automatic  rifles,  with ' 

great  effect,  killing  or  capturing  the  enemy. 

*  Wounded  here  were  Harris,  Fleckner,  Lang,  McDonald  and  later 
during  the  battle  Sergeant  Kerrigan,  Hal  Sang,  Jack  Corrigan,  Bart 
Cox,  William  Patterson,  James  O'Connor,  Maurice  O'Keefe,  H. 
McCallum,  Frank  S.  Erard,  Bob  Holmes,  J.  J.  Spillane  and  Tom 
Doherty. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  OURCQ  205 

From  the  time  that  Company  C  took  possession  of  Bois 
Colas  the  Machine  Gunners  kept  their  pieces  busy  from 
their  positions  on  the  north  edge  of  the  woods,  keeping 
down  German  fire  from  Seringes  and  around  Meurcy  Farm. 
Of  their  twelve  guns,  five  were  put  out  of  action.  In  the 
later  encounters  Lieutenants  Davis  and  Bell  were  wounded 
and  Jack  O'Leary,  a  famous  fighting  man,  received  a  wound 
which  afterwards  caused  his  death. 

In  the  front  line,  on  August  ist,  there  was  a  comparative 
lull  in  the  activity.  Our  artiller>^  was  still  going  strong, 
but  the  Germans  held  command  of  the  air  and  used  it  to 
the  full.  They  flew  down  to  the  rear  of  us  and  hovered 
over  the  tree-tops  of  the  woods  where  our  artillery  was 
emplaced,  dropping  bombs  on  them  and  shooting  at  them 
from  levels  so  low  that  the  artillery  men  answered  with 
fire  from  their  pistols. 

It  was  the  sudden  leap  of  the  cat  at  the  dog's  nose  before 
she  turns  to  flee.  At  four  A.  M.,  August  2nd,  our  patrols 
reported  no  resistance.  Word  was  sent  to  the  Ohios,  but 
they  found  the  enemy  still  in  their  path.  However,  under 
orders  from  General  Menoher,  the  whole  Division  started 
forward  and  found  that  the  main  body  of  the  enemy  had 
gone.  Our  Infantry  hastened  on  through  the  Foret  de 
Nesles,  keeping  in  touch  with  neighboring  regiments  left 
and  right.  Finally  they  encountered  resistance  near  Moreuil 
en  Dole,  north  of  the  forest.  The  4th  Division  was  coming 
up  to  relieve  us  but  Colonel  MacArthur  wanted  a  last  ef- 
fort made  by  his  Division.  He  called  on  one  regiment, 
then  on  another,  for  a  further  advance.  Their  command- 
ers said  truthfully  that  the  men  were  utterly  fatigued  and 
unable  to  go  forward  another  step.  "It's  up  to  you,  Mc- 
Coy," said  the  Chief  of  Staff.  Our  Colonel  called  Captain 
Martin  Meaney,  now  in  command  of  what  was  left  of  the 
third  battalion.  "Captain  Meaney,  a  battalion  is  wanted 
to  go  ahead  and  gain  contact  with  the  enemy ;  you  may  re- 
port on  the  condition  of  your  men."  "My  men  are  few 
and  they  are  tired,  sir,  but  they  are  willing  to  go  anywhere 


206  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

they  are  ordered,  and  they  will  consider  an  order  to  advance 
as  a  comphment,"  was  the  manly  response.  As  the  brave 
and  gallant  few  swung  jauntily  to  their  position  at  the  head 
of  the  Division,  Colonel  MacArthur  ejaculated,  "By  God, 
McCoy,  it  takes  the  Irish  when  you  want  a  hard  thing 
done."  The  battalion  located  the  enemy  and  took  up  the 
fight  with  them,  but  already  the  4th  Division  was  coming 
up  and  the  orders  for  relief  were  issued. 

In  that  bloody  week  the  Rainbow  Division  had  met  the 
4th  Prussian  Guard  Division,  commanded  by  the  Kaiser's 
son,  Prince  Eitel  Friedrich,  the  201st  German  and  loth 
Landwehr  and  the  6th  Bavarian  Division,  had  driven  them 
back  18  kilometers  to  the  last  ridge  south  of  the  Vesle  at 
a  cost  in  killed  and  wounded  of  184  officers  and  5,459  men. 

Back  came  our  decimated  battalions  along  the  way  they 
had  already  traveled.  They  marched  in  wearied  silence 
until  they  came  to  the  slopes  around  JMeurcy  Farm.  Then 
from  end  to  end  of  the  line  came  the  sound  of  dry,  sup- 
pressed sobs.  They  were  marching  among  the  bodies  of 
their  unburied  dead.  In  the  stress  of  battle  there  had  been 
but  little  time  to  think  of  them — all  minds  had  been  turned 
on  victory.  But  the  men  who  lay  there  were  dearer  to  them 
than  kindred,  dearer  than  life;  and  these  strong  warriors 
paid  their  bashful  involuntary  tribute  to  the  ties  of  love  and 
long  regret  that  bind  brave  men  to  the  memory  of  their 
departed  comrades. 


CHAPTER  VII 
AFTER  THE  BATTLE 

FORET   DE    FERE 

August,  1918 
This  is  a  dirty,  dank,  unwholesome  spot  and  the  daily 
rains  make  it  daily  more  intolerable.  But  they  are  keeping 
us  here  in  reserv^e  till  some  division — they  say  our  old 
townies  of  the  77th — has  time  to  come  up.  The  forest  has 
been  occupied  by  the  Germans  and  its  sanitary  conditions 
are  no  credit  to  their  boasted  efficiency.  Sixty  per  cent  of 
our  men  are  sick  with  diarrhoea  and  everybody  is  crawling 
w'ith  cooties.  The  men  are  sleeping  in  shelter  tents  or  in 
holes  in  the  ground  in  the  woods  and  they  are  a  sorry  look- 
ing lot. 

A  number  of  them  have  been  busy  with  me  in  the  heart- 
breaking task  of  burying  the  dead,  which  is  hard  for  every- 
body, but  particularly  I  think,  for  myself,  because  I  knew 
these  men  so  well  and  loved  them  as  if  they  were  my 
younger  brothers.  It  has  been  the  saddest  day  in  my  life. 
Well,  it  is  the  last  act  of  love  I  can  do  for  them  and  for  the 
folks  at  home.  God  comfort  them  in  their  sorrow.  I  must 
not  think  of  the  tragedy  of  it  too  much ;  the  main  thing  is  to 
keep  up  the  spirits  of  the  living,  for  battles  must  still  be 
fought  and  the  awful  price  paid  if  the  war  is  to  be  won. 
Many  of  us  who  have  come  through  this  will  be  dead  after 
the  next  battle;  and  if  the  war  lasts  another  year  or  so 
there  will  be  few,  very  few  left  of  the  infantry  in  our  First 
Hundred  Thousand.  It  is  a  soldier's  fate  and  we  must  be 
ready  for  it. 

In  this  one  battle  nearly  half  our  strength  is  gone.  We 
have  lost  fifty-nine  officers  and  thirteen  hundred  men  and 

207 


208  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

of  these  thirteen  ofificers  and  about  two  hundred  men  have 
been  killed  outright.  Many  of  our  wounded  have  been 
badly  hurt  and  we  shall  have  other  details  to  grieve  over.* 
But  in  spite  of  losses  and  sorrow  and  sickness  I  find  the  men 
surprisingly  cheerful  and  willing  to  carry  on.  They  have 
what  soldiers  most  wish  for,  Victory.  And  they  know  now 
that  the  men  who  opposed  their  path  and  had  to  give  way 
to  their  persistance  were  the  famous  Prussian  Guards,  of 
the  very  flower  of  the  German  Military  Machine.  The  old 
69th  had  again  lived  up  to  its  reputation  of  the  past;  there 
were  no  German  troops,  no  troops  in  the  world  that  could 
withstand  its  stubborn  bravery. 

I  went  amongst  the  survivors  to  gather  items  for  my 
chronicle  of  the  war.  I  may  say  here  as  I  rewrite  these 
chapters  that  I  have  had  to  obtain  many  of  the  incidents 
months  afterwards  from  men  that  have  been  wounded,  for 
many  of  those  who  could  best  tell  the  story  were  then  lying 
suffering  from  agonizing  wounds  on  hospital  cots,  and  still 
burning  with  the  courage  and  devotion  of  their  race  for  the 
day  when  they  could  once  more  return  to  the  post  of  danger 
with  their  beloved  regiment.  These  are  the  real  heroes  of 
the  war.  It  is  easy  under  the  stress  of  emotional  enthusiasm 
to  volunteer  for  service,  but  the  true  test  of  a  man  comes 
when,  after  he  has  faced  the  danger  of  sudden  death  and 

♦  Final  figures. 

Killed  Wounded  Missing 

Officers    14               45  o 

Enlisted   Men    224           1,135  153 

Total  Losses   238  1,180  153 

Grand  Total    i,57l 

Practically  all   of   those   marked   "missing"   were   wounded   men  of 
whom  no  record  was  sent  back  to  us  from  the  hospitals. 

In  the  Luneville  Sector  our  battle  losses  had  been  i  officer  and  29 
enlisted  men  killed ;   19  officers  and  408  enlisted  men  wounded. 

In  the  Baccarat  Sector,  3  men  killed  and  8  wounded. 

In  Champagne  i  officer  and  43  men  killed ;  7  officers  and  245  men 
wounded.     Our  missing  on  all  three  of  these  fronts  was  9  men. 

Between   March   ist  and  August   ist  the   Regiment  lost  315  killed, 
1,867  wounded,  162  missing,  making  a  grand  total  of  2,344. 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  209 

has  passed  through  days  of  racking  pain,  he  once  more 
insists,  in  spite  of  offers  of  easier  service  from  kindly  offi- 
cers, on  taking  his  place  again  in  the  battle  line  with  his  old 
comrades.  And  now  that  the  war  is  over,  there  is  nothing 
that  stirs  my  blood  like  the  petty  arrogance  of  some  officials 
in  hospitals  and  casual  camps  who  rebuke  the  requests  of 
men  (many  of  whom  have  been  wounded  and  gone  back 
into  line  and  got  wounded  again)  to  rejoin  tlieir  former 
outfits.     My  malison  on  their  tribe. 

I  shall  present  first  the  lists  of  names  mentioned  for  good 
work  (a  soldier's  meed)  and  afterwards  incidents  of  more 
general  interest.  Company  A  gives  credit  to  three  snipers 
for  working  out  to  the  front  ahead  of  them  and  making  the 
Fritzies  keep  their  heads  down  during  the  attack  on  July 
29th :  Corporal  Charles  Hallberg,  Edwin  Stubbs,  and  John 
McDonald.  They  also  spoke  highly  of  their  Sergeants  or 
Acting  Sergeants  on  whom  leadership  devolved  during  the 
fight :  Joseph  Higginson,  Joseph  Pettit,  John  R.  Scully, 
Hugh  McFadden,  Harr>'  Blaustein,  Will  Mehl,  Don  Mat- 
thews, Michael  Walsh,  Frederick  Garretson,  Sidney  Clark, 
and  John  Dennelly.  With  Dennelly  in  the  occupation  of 
Meurcy  Farm  were  John  Sheehy,  Maurice  Cotter,  Pilger, 
Newton,  Thorn,  Iverson  and  Frechales.  Besides  Hender- 
son, those  who  distinguished  themselves  by  liaison  work 
were  Corporal  Lester  Hanley,  Joseph  M.  McKinney,  Mi- 
chael Polychrom,  Louis  Tiffany,  John  Gannon  and  Edwin 
Dean.  Litter  Bearers :  Matt  Kane,  Howard  Hamm  and 
in  a  volunteer  capacity  Cook  Edward  Mooney,  Albert  Coop- 
er, August  Trussi.  Others  mentioned  with  high  praise  are 
Patrick  Thynne,  Patrick  J.  Doolin,  Fred  Stenson,  John  J. 
Morrissey,  James  Partridge,  Paul  Smith,  John  Barrett, 
Richard  Campion,  Louis  Cornibert,  Brady  and  Buckley. 

H  Company  B  ever  loses  its  big  Captain  they  have  al- 
ready a  candidate  of  their  own  to  succeed  him  in  his  senior 
lieutenant,  John  J.  Clifford,  a  cool  and  capable  officer,  as 
all  his  men  say.  The  greatest  loss  the  Company  has  suf- 
fered is  from  the  death  of  the  First  Sergeant,  John  O'Neill, 


210  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

a  remarkable  old  soldier  with  regular  army  experience, 
who  was  frightfully  wounded  by  shell  fire  while  getting  up 
supplies,  and  died  in  hospital.  Al  Dunn,  a  game  youth,  was 
hit  by  the  same  shell,  but  refused  to  allow  anybody  to  touch 
him  until  O'Neill  was  looked  after.  Among  other  good 
men  who  received  wounds  were  John  Mooney,  William 
Judge,  Al  Whnlen,  Harry  Guenther,  Dan  Finnegan, 
Thomas  Fitzpatrick,  Vincent  Farrell,  Francis  X.  Goodwin, 
and  William  O'Sullivan.  The  platoon  under  Lieutenant 
Wheatley  that  joined  the  attack  with  Company  A,  had  for 
its  non-coms  Edward  Kelly,  Langan,  Cullinan,  Travis,  Pat- 
rick Kelly,  Foster,  Tinker,  McClymont  and  Mearns.  Lieu- 
tenant Clifford  had  high  praise  for  Sergeant  Thomas,  who 
had  gone  out  on  the  night  of  July  28th  to  repulse  a  coun- 
ter-attack of  the  Germans  and,  of  those  in  the  detachment, 
Connie  Reuss,  Corporal  Michael  Tierney,  a  Clare  man,  who 
was  killed ;  and  also  amongst  the  killed  Charles  Chambers, 
a  patriotic  volunteer  who  leaves  a  wife  to  mourn  him  in  the 
city  of  Dublin.  James  Dwyer,  Joseph  McCarthy,  Joseph 
Maher  and  John  A.  Lane  were  also  badly  wounded.  As 
John  A.  Lane  was  lying  out  in  a  very  exposed  position  his 
namesake,  John  B.  Lane,  a  lad  of  eighteen,  and  the  pride 
of  the  Company  as  a  clever  little  boxer,  declared  that  he  was 
going  out  to  carry  the  other  in.  He  did  so  without  scath, 
but  was  killed  three  days  later  in  front  of  Meurcy  Farm. 
Private  Frank  McGovern  received  praise  for  a  similar  ac- 
tion on  the  29th ;  also  Harold  Kyte,  Thomas  Walsh,  John 
O'Connor,  James  Lannon,  James  Austin  and  John  Mat- 
thews, litter  bearers.  John  Mahoney  especially  distin- 
guished himself  in  this  line,  carrying  the  wounded  to  the 
rear  and  then  lugging  up  food  for  the  surviving  fighters. 
Good  liaison  work  was  done  by  Charles  Weick,  James 
Murray,  James  Brennan,  Ed.  Powers,  Jim  Brundage,  Ar- 
thur La  Salle,  and  John  Kane,  a  youngster  of  seventeen. 
Thomas  Herlihy  and  Charles  Kavanagh  were  also  com- 
mended. 

Inquiry  at  Company  C  gave  me  the  name  of  John  Teevan, 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  211 

who  on  the  31st  left  cover  to  save  a  w^ounded  comrade  and 
was  himself  wounded  while  doing  it;  Sergeant  Herman  Hil- 
lig,  always  a  good  man,  who  led  the  advance  patrol  on  the 
29th;  Corporal  Frank  Drivdahl,  who  took  charge  of  a  half 
platoon  when  his  seniors  were  wounded  and  led  it  into 
handgrips  with  the  enemy.  All  of  the  non-coms  distin- 
guished themselves.  First  Sergeant  Gene  Halpin,  always  a 
steady  leader;  Tom  O'Hagan,  the  beau  ideal  of  an  Irish 
soldier;  Sergeants  Joe  Hennessey,  John  Knight,  John  Mc- 
Auliflfe,  Peter  Keller,  Frank  Colyer,  Corporals  Frank  Duffy, 
James  Barry,  Charles  Quinn,  Edward  Gordon,  Edward 
Brown,  and  amongst  those  wounded  Arthur  Totten,  Ar- 
thur Slicklen,  Peter  Gammel,  the  Peisel  brothers,  and  Denis 
Cahill,  sturdiest  of  old-timers.  This  Company  claims  that 
it  has  the  most  heroic  and  devoted  lot  of  litter  bearers  that 
ever  deliberately  took  their  lives  in  their  hands.  By  the 
stories  I  hear  it  is  hard  to  choose  between  them.  They  are 
Thomas  P.  McPherson,  Edmond  McCarthy,  James  and  Jo- 
seph Burns  (twins  in  birth  and  twins  in  courage)  and  Ed- 
ward F.  Brown.  They  were  always  at  the  front,  day  and 
night,  and  they  should  all  have  the  Distinguished  Service 
Cross.  Liaison  men  mentioned  are  Clarence  Smith  and 
Vivian  Commons,  Others  that  received  praise  were  Fred- 
erick Craven,  Corporal  Childress,  who  came  over  on  the 
torpedoed  Tiiscania  and  joined  us  at  Baccarat;  Corporal 
Pat  Moran,  Thomas  Leddy,  James  Heaney ;  and  Mess  Ser- 
geant Grace  with  cooks  Duffy  and  Wilson,  who  won  the 
eternal  gratitude  of  the  Company  by  carrying  food  to  them 
in  line. 

W'illiam  Hisle  was  one  of  the  first  names  I  got  from 
Company  D,  a  man  who  did  extraordinarily  fine  work  as 
a  litter  bearer.  John  J.  Kolodgy  also,  and  Edward  Coxe 
(wounded  at  tlie  same  task  and  sticking  on  the  job  until 
killed)  are  in  the  same  class.  Liaison  men:  Louis  Mur- 
phy, William  P.  White,  John  Conway,  John  Dale,  Frank 
DeJMuth;  while  others  mentioned  are  Mess  Sergeant  Ed- 
ward Mclntee,  Pat  Crowley,  "the  wild  Irishman,"  Pat  Gro- 


212  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

gan  (wounded  again),  John  L.  Burke,  Peter  Carberry, 
Charles  Edgerton,  Richard  Dwyer  (who  said  "Tend  to  me 
last"  when  wounded),  Thomas  Keyes,  Sergeant  Denis 
Murphy,  badly  wounded ;  Denis  O'Connor,  Charles  Lynch, 
Everett  Smith,  John  Caliill,  Andrew  O'Rourke,  Peter 
O'Sullivan,  Martin  Hurst,  Arthur  Comer,  John  L.  Thomp- 
son, John  Cox,  Joseph  P.  Tracy  and  Patrick  Finn  (both 
'98  men)  and  Fred  Urban,  a  new  man  and  a  great  shot  with 
the  rifle,  with  Chief  Powless  and  Tony  Zaliski. 

Company  E  told  me  of  Michael  Breen,  who  received  his 
death  wound,  covering  the  advance  of  his  Company  by  the 
use  of  smoke  grenades;  William  Foley  and  James  Fitz- 
patrick,  going  out  under  fire  to  rescue  two  companions; 
George  M.  Failing,  who  did  noble  work  as  a  litter  bearer ; 
John  Costello,  Thomas  Cullen  (both  killed),  with  Bechtold 
and  William  Goldenburg,  four  privates  who  saved  their 
Company  by  putting  a  machine  gun  out  of  action.  Ser- 
geant Augustus  T.  Morgan,  also  Sergeant  Frank  Johnston 
and  Corporal  John  Cronin  did  heroic  work. 

Company  F,  Bernard  Corcoran  got  a  bullet  across  both 
his  eyeballs  which  will  render  him  blind  for  life.  John  Fitz- 
gibbon,  Michael  Douglas,  Frank  Dunn,  Charles  Dougherty, 
William  Garry,  Leo  Hanifin,  Owen  Carney,  George  D. 
Lannon,  Frank  Kelly,  Gottfried  Kern,  Edward  Chabot, 
James  McCormack,  John  McAuliffe,  Daniel  McGrath, 
Peter  McGuiness,  William  McQuade,  John  P.  Mahon, 
Herbert  Doyle,  Peter  Malloy,  shot  through  the  lung,  Wil- 
liam Mulligan,  Charles  O'Leary  and  William  Moran,  Ser- 
geant Pat  Wynne,  John  Smith,  Peter  Rogers,  Frank 
Sweeney  and  William  Walsh  are  on  the  honor  roll. 

Company  G  had  the  greatest  praise  for  Edmund  Reardon 
and  Charles  McGeary,  who  did  remarkable  work  saving 
others  until  finally  death  came  to  themselves.  Others  men- 
tioned with  praise  are  Corporal  Edward  Fitzgerald  and  Ser- 
geant Edward  McNamara,  who  had  to  be  ordered  out  of 
the  line  when  wounded.  Also  Corporal  David  Fitzgibbons, 
Thomas  Meade,  Michael  Shea,  Michael  O'Brien,  Patrick 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  213 

Donohue,  Frank  Cahill,  Thomas  Bohan,  First  Sergeant 
John  Meaney,  Corporal  Frank  Garland,  Thomas  McGowan, 
James  Brennan,  Sergeant  James  Coffey;  Robert  Monohan 
and  Patrick  McNamara,  liaison  men ;  and  Maurice  Dwyer, 
mechanic,  who  always  dropped  his  tools  and  picked  up  a 
ritle  when  a  battle  was  on. 

Company  H  thinks  that  it  is  about  time  that  Sergeant 
Dudley  Winthrop  got  a  citation.  His  latest  feat  was  to  go 
wandering  out  in  the  open  where  everybody  that  went  had 
been  hit,  searching  out  his  wounded  comrades.  Martin 
Higgins  has  also  been  recommended  for  citation  for  the 
same  kind  of  heroic  activity.  Patrick  Reynolds  went  out 
alone  and,  by  expert  sniping  at  close  range,  put  out  of  ac- 
tion a  machine  gun  that  was  holding  up  the  advance.  Later 
on,  he  was  killed.  Sergeant  John  J.  Walker  kept  his  pla- 
toon going  when  his  seniors  were  wounded.  Callahan, 
Dunseith,  Ernst,  Conway,  Bealin,  McDonald,  O'Brien,  Mc- 
Kenna,  Sweeney,  White,  Frieburger,  Crose  and  Bushey  are 
also  recommended  for  excellent  work. 

I  have  already  gone  through  the  list  of  Company  I,  so  I 
shall  just  add  an  additional  list  of  non-coms  who  were 
wounded :  Sergeants  Harold  J.  Murphy  and  William  Lyle, 
Corporals  Wilton  Wharton,  Charles  Beckwith,  L.  Vessell, 
James  Brady,  William  Burke,  William  Crossin,  Patrick 
Farrell,  Alfred  Georgi,  Hugh  Kelly,  Michael  Learnahan, 
John  Maddock,  H.  R.  Morton,  Patrick  O'Brien,  Francis 
O'Neill,  Edward  Powers,  William  Reutlinger,  and  James 
Sullivan. 

The  men  from  Company  I  whose  names  were  selected  at 
the  time  for  a  Regimental  Citation  were  First  Sergeant  Pat- 
rick McMeniman,  who  was  really  in  command  of  the  Com- 
pany during  most  of  the  trying  time  on  the  hill;  Dexter, 
Dynan,  Howard,  Coen,  Farley,  Coppinger,  Battersby,  and 
Lesser  as  stretcher  bearers;  Cook  Michael  J.  O'Brien,  who 
carried  food  to  the  front  line  no  m.atter  how  dangerous  it 
was,  and  carried  wounded  on  the  return  trip ;  and  Thomas 
A.  Boyle,  who  seeing  an  abandoned  automatic  rifle  ran 


214  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

forward  under  vicious  fire,  loaded  it  and  started  it  working 
against  the  enemy;  and  finally,  William  B.  Lyons,  promi- 
nent as  liaison  man  and  stretcher  bearer. 

Company  K  recommends  Nicholas  E.  Grant,  a  liaison 
man,  along  with  its  heroic  Captain,  Sergeant  Joe  Farrell, 
Victor  Van  Yorx,  John  Doyle,  stretcher  bearer,  and  the 
self-sacrificing  William  Bergen,  Francis  I.  Kelly,  also  a 
martyr  to  loyalty,  as  he  was  killed  while  rendering  first  aid 
to  Lieutenant  Stott.  Burr  Finkle  and  John  J.  McLaughlin 
are  recommended  for  a  display  of  extraordinary  heroism. 

In  Company  L  the  valiant  Captain  and  Lieutenant  Spen- 
cer have  been  recommended  for  the  D.  S.  C.  For  rescue 
work,  Thomas  Deignan,  Joseph  Coogan,  John  Ahern,  Jo- 
seph Grace,  Charles  Oakes,  W^illiam  Hughes,  jVIichael  Fal- 
lon (twice  wounded)  and  James  Santori,  the  latter  being 
killed  while  placing  a  wounded  man  on  a  stretcher.  Lieu- 
tenant Wellboume,  with  the  Sergeants  already  mentioned, 
and  also  Corporals  Edward  McDonough,  Harry  McDer- 
mott,  Eugene  McCue,  and  Wild  Bill  Ryan  distinguished 
themselves  by  their  work  in  the  line.  So,  too,  did  James 
Judge,  Thomas  Boyle,  Eddie  Bloom,  Arthur  Campbell, 
John  Burke,  Will  Coleman,  John  Murphy,  Matt  Devlin, 
Hugh  Fagan,  Fred  Meyers,  Leslie  Ouackenbush,  John  Mul- 
vey,  Peter  O'Connor,  Maurice  Powers,  Val  Roesel,  John 
B.  McHugh,  Sam  Ross,  Peter  Deary,  James  Streffler,  Harr}^ 
Baldwin,  expert  sniper,  and  Eddie  Morrissey,  liaison  man. 

Captain  Meaney  of  Company  M  gave  the  highest  recom- 
mendation to  Lieutenant  Collier  and  also  to  Corporals 
Thomas  J.  Courtney  and  Patrick  Ames,  both  of  them  sol- 
diers of  remarkable  coolness  and  resolution.  The  men  of 
this  Company  were  kept  busy  throughout  the  week  as  food 
and  ammunition  carriers  and  stretcher  bearers.  Amongst 
those  who  distinguished  themselves  in  these  tasks  were  Cor- 
porals James  Duffy  and  Jack  Manson,  with  Edward  Mendes, 
Daniel  Leahy,  William  Lynch,  John  Feeley,  Thomas  Fer- 
rier,  William  O'Neill,  Frank  Sisco,  James  Shanahan,  Ed- 
ward Flanagan,  Patrick  Bryne,  Frank  Cullum,  James  Igo, 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  215 

James  A.  Watts,  the  Rodriguez  brothers  and  Herbert  Dun- 
lay. 

Captain  Walsh  of  Headquarters  Company  recommended 
Sergeant  Arthur  Jaeger,  Sergeant  John  J.  Ryan,  Corporal 
Charles  Leister  of  the  one-pounders,  with  Corporal  Leslie 
Reynolds  and  Privates  Robert  Callaghan,  Clarence  Cump- 
ston,  Maurice  Small,  Charles  Goecking,  Spencer  Sully,  John 
C.  McLaughlin  and  William  Hearn  (who  also  did  heroic 
work  rescuing  the  wounded),  Corporal  A.  A.  Brochon  and 
Privates  James  P.  McCabe  and  Arthur  Olsen  and  Kirwin 
of  the  Signal  Platoon,  In  the  Stokes  Mortars  Sergeant 
Thomas  Fitzsimmons,  Jeremiah  J.  Casey,  Thomas  J.  Kelly 
and  Malcolm  Robertson,  Thomas  J.  Taylor,  Herbert  Clarke 
with  Moore,  Wisner,  Hayes,  Nugent,  Robb,  Levins,  Orr, 
Shannon,  Dugdale,  and  my  old  friend,  John  Mahon,  who 
always  has  some  special  reason  why  he  should  be  selected 
as  a  member  of  every  gun  crew  sent  to  the  front  line; 
George  Utermehle,  Stable  Sergeant;  Jerome  Goldstein, 
Mess  Sergeant;  with  Cooks  John  A.  Wilker,  Maher  Mc- 
Avoy  and  Wagoner  James  Collintine;  and  Jim  Turner, 
wounded  while  doing  courageous  work  as  a  liaison  man. 

The  Machine  Gun  Company  cites  their  runners,  John  L. 
B.  Sullivan,  William  IMurphy,  Hantschke,  Charles  Smith, 
and  James  Ledwith.  Also  Lieutenant  Billings,  who  had  the 
dangerous  task  of  keeping  up  the  supply  of  ammunition, 
which  he  accomplished  with  the  aid  of  two  excellent  non- 
coms,  Sid  Ryan  and  Joe  McCourt  (one  of  the  most  efficient 
men  in  the  whole  regiment).  Every  man  in  the  company 
sang  the  praises  of  Bill  Sheppard,  Paul  Fay  and  Pete  Gil- 
lespie; also  of  Leon  Baily  and  Frank  Gardella,  who  spent 
their  leisure  moments  carrying  in  Company  C's  wounded. 

The  Supply  Company  wagoners  Peter  J.  Seagriff,  Albert 
Richford,  A.  Brown,  Philip  Smith  and  Thomas  J.  Ferris, 
won  praise  for  difficult  and  dangerous  tasks  courageously 
performed  by  night  and  day. 

The  Sanitary  Detachment,  in  addition  to  those  men- 
tioned, gave  me  Milledge  Whitlock,  Louis  Bidwell,  John 


216  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

McKeough,  John  P.  Murphy,  Patrick  Fawcett,  Thomas  V. 
Boland,  Walter  Clark  and  Sergeant  Arthur  Furman.  Whit- 
lock,  Wright  and  Walker  were  at  an  advance  aid-post  un- 
der the  river  bank  all  week  long. 

The  most  striking  incident  I  heard  described  took  place  in 
Company  D  as  they  were  waiting  in  the  street  of  Villers  sur 
Fere  about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  28th.  The 
Germans  were  raking  the  streets  with  high  explosives  and 
shrapnel,  and  men  were  falling,  hit  by  the  flying  pieces. 
The  most  trying  moment  in  battle  is  going  into  action  un- 
der shell  fire,  especially  at  night.  The  shells  come 
wh-e-e-e~zing  over.  One  goes  Whannng !  up  the  road — an- 
other in  a  field  to  the  right!  Then  one  falls  on  a  house 
and  the  tiles,  plaster,  fragments  of  stone  are  scattered  over 
the  men  who  are  lying  in  the  lee  of  it.  Then  another  comes, 
more  menacing  in  its  approaching  whistle.  Men  run,  drop 
on  the  ground,  stand  petrified.  And  it  lands  in  the  midst 
of  them.  There  are  cries,  ceasing  suddenly  as  if  cut  off 
with  a  knife,  curses,  sobs  of  "Oh,  God!"  "They  got  me!" 
"For  God's  sake,  pick  me  up,  Jim."  The  survivors  rush 
back,  ripping  open  their  First  Aid  packages,  the  non-coms 
bawling  orders,  everybody  working  in  a  frenzy  to  save  the 
wounded.  And  then  perhaps  another  shell  landing  in  the 
same  place  will  send  them  all  away  from  the  troubles  of 
this  awful  world. 

Company  D  was  going  through  all  this,  and  for  the  time 
being,  without  officers.  Buck  was  gassed  the  day  before; 
Connelly  and  Daly  had  gone  off  to  execute  their  difficult 
operation  to  the  rrght.  First  Sergeant  Geaney  being 
with  them ;  Burke  was  away  on  his  mission  of  danger  and 
glory.  The  remaining  Lieutenant  had  been  called  to  receive 
orders.  Two  corporals,  Patrick  MacDonough  and  John 
Gribbon,  had  been  working  hard,  giving  first  aid  to  the 
wounded,  and  they  began  to  worry  about  the  possible  ef- 
fect of  the  shelling  on  the  men.  So  they  went  up  the  line 
to  look  for  some  person  in  higher  authority. 

They  found  no  officer  but  they  did  find  Sergeant  Tom 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  217 

O'Malley  sitting  against  a  stone  wall,  sucking  philosophi- 
cally at  his  pipe,  as  if  the  wall  were  the  side  of  a  stone  fence 
in  his  native  Connemara.  Now  the  sight  of  Tom  O'Malley 
breeds  confidence  in  the  heart  of  every  soldier  in  Company 
D. 

"Where's  the  officers,  Tom?" 

"Oi  don't  know  where  th'  hell  they  are,"  says  Tom,  be- 
tween puffs  of  his  pipe,  and  in  the  slow,  soft  speech  of  the 
West  Coast  Irish,  "If  ye  were  in  camp  and  ye  didn't  want 
to  see  thim,  ye'd  be  thrippin'  over  thim.  But  now  whin  ye 
want  t'  know  what  ye  got  to  do  in  a  foight  ye  can't  find 
wan  of  thim." 

"Well,  Tom,  we'll  elect  you  Captain  and  you  take  charge 
of  the  men  until  some  of  the  officers  get  back,  or  they  may 
be  getting  out  of  hand." 

"No,  lads,  Oi  don't  fancy  meself  in  a  Sam  Brown  belt 
Dick  O'Neill  here  is  a  noice  young  fellah,  so  we'll  elect 
Dick  Captain,  and  O'll  make  ye  fellahs  do  what  he  tells  ye." 
So  Sergeant  O'Neill,  a  youth  of  twenty-one,  took  charge  of 
the  situation,  got  the  men  together  in  small  groups  under 
their  non-coms,  and  in  places  of  comparative  safety,  and 
had  them  all  ready  when  Lieutenant  Cook  came  back  from 
the  conference  to  issue  their  orders  to  cross  the  Ourcq. 

It  is  something  that  we  call  typically  American  that  a 
number  of  men  under  a  stress  and  in  an  emergency  like  this, 
should  get  together,  choose  their  own  leaders  and  obey 
them  implicitly  for  the  common  good.  These  four  men  are 
Americans  of  the  type  we  are  proudest  of.  Yet  it  is  worth 
noting  that  three  out  of  the  four  were  born  in  an  island 
whose  inhabitants,  we  are  often  told,  are  unfit  for  self- 
government.  As  for  Dick  O'Neill,  he  is  one  hundred  per 
cent  American,  but  it  would  take  a  braver  man  than  I  can 
claim  to  be  to  tell  Dick  O'Neill  that  he  is  not  Irish,  too. 

One  of  the  members  of  D  Company  who  was  wounded 
in  this  spot  was  Matt  Sullivan,  an  old-timer,  and  a  kindly 
pleasant  man  who  always  took  an  interest  in  the  younger 
lads,  so  that  he  was  known  as  "Pop."    His  two  special  pro- 


218  FATHER  DUFFY^  STORY 

teges  were  Barney  Friedman  and  George  Johnson.  Wheni 
he  was  hit  he  was  ordered  to  the  rear,  but  he  said,  "I'll  not 
stir  out  o'  this  till  I  see  if  the  children  are  safe,  God  bless 
them."  He  hobbled  around  in  the  gray  dawn  until  he  found 
the  boys  and  then  started  for  the  rear. 

Company  I  had  a  number  of  little  battle  pictures  to  give 
me  besides  those  I  have  already  written.  One  was  of  Barney 
Farley,  who  was  busy  all  morning  dressing  wounds,  and 
after  he  had  stopped  the  flow  of  blood,  before  picking  up 
his  man,  he  would  roll  a  cigarette,  stick  it  in  the  wounded 
man's  mouth  with  a  cheery  "Here,  take  a  pull  out  of  this, 
avic.    It'll  do  ye  good." 

Alike  Lenihan,  wounded  while  on  the  hill  and  told  to  go 
back,  said,  "No,  I've  waited  so  long  to  get  at  them  I  won't 
lave  this  hill."  Another  shot  got  him,  and  he  was  carried 
off. 

Tom  Shannon,  being  carried  in,  got  o£f  his  stretcher  and 
wanted  to  give  his  place  to  another  man  who,  he  said,  was 
worse  wounded  than  himself.  An  officer  ordered  him 
back  on  the  stretcher  and  he  was  carried  in,  and  since  then 
I  have  heard  he  has  died  of  his  wounds. 

William  Cleary,  wounded  in  the  shoulder,  refused  to 
leave  without  orders,  so  they  led  him  to  where  Captain 
Ryan  was  lying  in  a  shell  hole,  himself  wounded.  The 
Captain  looked  up  at  him.  "You've  got  a  bad  wound.  No 
use  around  here.  You're  young — got  good  color  in  your 
face — live  long.     Got  good  legs  yet — run  like  hell." 

The  Captain  saw  a  German  near  the  top  of  the  hill  who 
was  using  an  automatic,  and  he  wanted  to  try  a  shot  at  him, 
so  he  borrowed  Pat  Flynn's  rifle,  fired  and  missed,  the  pain 
of  the  recoil  disconcerting  his  aim.  He  tried  again ;  then  he 
said  :  "I'm  going  to  pull  the  last  bit  of  Irish  in  me  together 
and  get  that  fellow."  With  the  last  shot  in  the  clip  he  got 
him. 

Two  men  from  Company  L  had  a  laugh  about  Fortgang, 
who,  one  of  them  said,  is  the  champion  moocher  of  the 
Company,  and  can  always  get  something  to  eat  no  matter 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  219 

how  short  the  rations  are.  They  were  lying  out  on  that 
shot-swept  hill  on  the  morning  of  the  28th  when  Fortgang 
produced  from  somewhere  a  can  of  solidified  alcohol  and 
three  strips  of  bacon.  He  calmly  proceeded  to  start  his  lit- 
tle fire,  and  fried  his  bacon,  which  he  shared  with  the  men 
on  each  side  of  him;  and  thus  fortified,  picked  up  his  rifle 
once  more  and  began  to  blaze  away  at  the  Germans. 

While  the  topic  is  food  I  may  add  that  the  whole  com- 
pany is  devoted  to  j\Iess  Sergeant  McDonald  and  Cook  Con- 
nelly, whose  kitchen  was  hit  but  who  swore  they  would 
"stick  to  it  while  there's  a  spoke  left  in  it."  Hugh  Fagan 
was  one  of  the  men  who  had  to  be  driven  off  the  hill  after 
being  badly  wounded. 

I  saw  several  men  who  were  hit  through  the  helmet,  the 
bullet  entering  in  front  and  going  out  at  the  back  without 
inflicting  a  wound.  One  of  them  was  Edward  McDonough, 
who  seemed  to  consider  it  a  great  joke,  though  another  man 
who  had  the  same  thing  happen  to  him,  a  man  whom  I  did 
not  know,  was  walking  in  wide  circles,  unable  to  pursue  a. 
steady  course  unless  he  had  a  wall  or  a  fence  to  guide  on. 

Captain  Hurley  of  Company  K  got  four  or  five  wounds 
at  once  in  leg,  arm  and  back,  but  refused  to  allow  himself 
to  be  carried,  saying  impatiently,  "Now,  don't  be  bothering 
with  me.  I'd  like  to  see  myself  on  a  litter  while  there's 
men  much  worse  off  than  myself  still  lying  on  the  ground." 

I  was  in  the  dressing  station  one  evening  when  a  sturdy 
young  lieutenant  walked  in  with  one  hand  almost  blovvn 
away.  He  announced  himself  to  be  Lieutenant  Wolf  of  the 
150th  Machine  Gun  Battalion,  and  settled  down  on  the  table 
for  his  operation  with  more  coolness  than  most  people  dis- 
play when  getting  their  photograph  taken.  He  had  just  one 
thing  on  his  mind,  and  that  did  not  concern  himself.  He  had 
come  in  with  an  ammunition  detail,  which  was  ready  to  start 
back  when  a  shell  got  him  just  outside  the  hospital  door. 
That  detail  had  to  go  back.  He  was  much  relieved,  one 
would  say  perfectly  contented,  when  I  assured  him  that  I 
would    convey    his    orders    to    the    sergeant    in    charge. 


220        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Through  such  men  battles  are  won,  and  nations  made  fa- 
mous for  bravery. 

On  one  of  the  days  of  the  battle  I  was  coming  up  the 
street  of  Villers  sur  Fere  with  Jack  Percy  when  an  enemy 
gun  began  to  land  shells  just  across  the  narrow  street  from 
us.  We  dropped  alongside  a  wall  when  the  shriek  of  the 
first  one  told  us  it  was  coming  across  the  home  plate,  and 
as  we  lay  there  I  saw  a  ration  wagon  coming  down  the  road 
■  with  George  Utermehle,  Sergeant  of  mounted  section,  H.  Q. 
Company,  on  the  box.  George  had  no.  whip  and  was  urging 
his  team  by  throwing  cherries  at  their  heads.  I  shouted  at 
him,  "This  is  a  bad  corner  just  now,  they're  shelling  it," 
"Oh,  this  old  team  of  mine  can  beat  out  any  shell,"  said 
George,  as  he  hit  the  ear  of  his  off  animal  with  a  cherry; 
and  he  went  tearing  by  in  time  to  miss  the  next,  and,  Iwas 
happy  to  find  out,  the  last  one  that  came  over. 

I  overheard  a  conversation  in  the  woods  which  gave  me 
a  good  story  on  Major  Donovan.  The  majority  of  his  bat- 
talion have  always  looked  on  him  as  the  greatest  man  in  the 
world.  But  a  certain  number  were  resentful  and  complain- 
ing  on  account  of  the  hard  physical  drilling  he  has  con- 
tinually given  them  to  keep  them  in  condition  for  just  the 
sort  of  thing  they  had  to  go  through  last  week.  As  a  result 
of  watching  him  through  six  days  of  battle — his  coolness, 
cheerfulness,  resourcefulness — there  is  now  no  limit  to  their 
admiration  for  him.  What  I  overheard  was  the  partial  con- 
version of  the  last  dissenter.  He  still  had  a  grouch  about 
what  he  had  been  put  through  during  the  past  year,  and 
three  other  fellows  were  pounding  him  with  arguments  to 
prove  Donovan's  greatness.     Finally  he  said  grudgingly, 

"Well,  I'll  say  this:  Wild  Bill  is  a  son  of  a ,  but  he's  a 

game  one."  When  I  told  it  to  Donovan,  he  laughed  and 
said,  "Well,  Father,  when  I'm  gone  write  that  as  my  epi- 
taph." 

I  shall  always  think  that  the  finest  compliment  paid  to 
Major  Donovan  was  the  devotion  of  John  Patrick  Kayes, 
an  Irishman,  very  tall,  very  thin,  somewhat  stoop-shoul- 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  221 

dered,  not  at  all  young,  and  a  servant  of  the  rich  in  civil 
life.  The  Irish  in  him  had  made  him  a  volunteer.  He  was 
put  in  charge  of  the  Battalion  H.  Q.  mess,  and  I  used  to  tell 
Donovan  that  I  came  to  visit  him,  not  on  account  of  his  own 
attractions,  but  because  of  what  John  Kayes  had  to  offer 
me.  He  refused  to  remain  behind  in  action.  He  wanted 
to  be  where  the  Major  was,  though  he  knew  that  anybody 
who  kept  near  Donovan  stood  an  excellent  chance  of  be- 
ing killed.  On  July  31st  he  went  forward  with  him  on  his 
restless  rounds,  which  led  them  out  of  the  shelter  of  Bois 
Colas  into  the  open  country.  A  German  machine  gun  be- 
gan firing  at  them  and  Kayes  was  struck  in  the  ankle.  He 
fell  forward  into  the  path  of  the  bullets  and  as  different 
portions  of  his  long  body  neared  the  ground  he  was  hit 
successively  in  the  thigh,  arm  and  face.  He  still  had 
strength  enough  to  protest  that  the  ]\Iajor  should  not  risk 
himself  by  carrying  him  in.  He  died  in  hospital  weeks 
later,  his  last  thoughts  being  that  Major  Donovan  would  be 
neglected  with  him  gone.  The  terms  "hero"  and  "butler" 
are  not  generally  associated  in  fiction,  but  they  met  in  the 
person  of  John  Patrick  Kayes. 

Major  Lawrence  tells  me  that  he  met  Captain  P.  P.  Raf- 
ferty,  a  doctor  in  our  Divisional  Sanitary  Train,  who  told 
him, 

"We  had  an  original  character  from  your  outfit  through 
here  last  week — a  Lieutenant  Connelly.  He  was  lying  on 
a  cot  and  in  a  good  deal  of  pain,  I  knew,  when  I  was  sur- 
prised to  hear  him  laugh  a  hearty  laugh.  I  thought  he  was 
going  out  of  his  head  and  I  went  over  to  him  and  said, 
'What's  happened  to  you  that's  funny,  Lieutenant?" 

"  'Oh,'  he  said,  'I  was  just  thinking  about  something.* 

"  'Let  me  in  on  it,'  I  said.  'There  is  not  much  to  amuse 
a  man  happening  around  here.' 

"  'Well,'  said  he,  'it's  just  an  incident  of  battle.  I  was 
in  command  of  a  Company  that  had  just  about  forty  men 
left,  and  Major  Donovan  gave  me  orders  to  send  some  of 
them  one  way  and  some  another  and  take  the  rest  and  cap- 


222  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ture  a  woods  and  Meurcy  Farm.  Just  after  I  started  I  got 
into  a  mix-up  and  was  put  out  of  action  and  my  first 
thought  was  'Thank  God !  Now  I  don't  have  to  take  that 
damn  farm.'  " 

One  of  my  own  prayers  of  Thanksgiving  is  "Praise  be! 
Major  Lawrence  is  back."  When  I  told  him  so  he  thanked 
me  for  the  comphment,  but  I  said,  "George,  don't  take  it  as 
coming  from  me.  It  is  only  for  my  own  peace  of  mind. 
Since  the  day  you  left  I  have  been  pestered  by  everybody, 
officers  and  men,  who  have  the  right  to  wear  your  red  cross 
armlet,  with  the  plaintive  petition,  'Father  Duffy,  can't  you 
do  something  to  get  out  Major  back?'  " 

We  joke  Rerat  about  the  size  of  the  French  rivers.  I 
told  him  that  one  of  our  soldiers  lay  badly  wounded  jiear 
the  river,  and  I  offered  him  a  pull  at  my  canteen.  Raising 
himself  on  one  elbow  and  throwing  out  his  arm  in  a  Sir 
Philip  Sydney  fashion,  he  exclaimed,  "Give  it  to  the  Ourcq, 
it  needs  it  more  than  I  do." 

The  Germans  nearly  had  a  grim  joke  on  me  during  the 
action.  We  picked  up  our  dead  in  the  town,  and  I  had  the 
Pioneers  dig  me  a  long  trench  on  the  south  side  of  the 
cemetery  wall,  which  screened  them  from  observation  while 
their  own  trench  would  give  protection.  I  said  "This  spot 
is  the  safest  place  in  France."  We  finished  our  sad  task 
and  went  away.  A  few  hours  later  I  passed  that  way 
again  and  found  that  the  wall  against  which  I  was  sitting 
was  smashed  to  the  ground ;  a  tree  eight  inches  in  diameter 
which  had  shaded  me  was  blown  in  two,  and  two  other  mis- 
siles had  exploded  five  feet  from  the  line  of  graves.  Evi- 
dently a  German  aviator,  seeing  the  freshly  turned  earth, 
thought  that  it  was  a  gun  emplacement  and  dropped  three 
of  his  nasty  eggs.  I  smiled  grimly  as  my  words  came  back, 
"The  safest  place  in  France." 

Going  through  the  woods  I  heard  John  McMorrow  dis- 
cussing a  date  with  Monzert  of  Headquarters  Company, 
and  he  was  saying,  "It  happened  the  first  day  we  went  over. 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  223 

I  tell  you  it  was.  It  was  on  the  mornin'  that  we  crossed  the 
O'Rourke  River  and  captured  Murphy's  Farm." 

Colonel  McCoy  felt  deeply  grieved  at  the  news  of  Quen- 
tin  Roosevelt's  heroic  death  in  an  air  battle  some  time  be- 
fore, as  he  knew  him  from  boyhood,  having  been  military 
aide  at  the  White  House  during  part  of  President  Roose- 
velt's term  of  office.  We  knew  that  Lieutenant  Roosevelt 
had  met  his  death  in  this  sector,  and  our  Colonel  had  insti- 
tuted inquiries  to  find  if  any  person  had  discovered  his 
grave.  Word  was  brought  to  him  that  the  grave  had  been 
found  in  the  sector  to  our  right,  which  was  occupied  by  the 
32nd  Division,  and  Colonel  McCoy  determined  to  have  it 
suitably  marked.  I  had  a  cross  made  and  inscribed  by 
Julius  Horvath,  and  the  Colonel  with  Lieutenant  Preston 
and  myself  went  by  automobile  to  the  place  to  erect  it  over 
the  grave.  We  found  the  roughly  made  cross  formed  from 
pieces  of  his  broken  plane  that  the  Germans  had  set  to 
mark  the  place  where  they  buried  him.  The  plot  had  al- 
ready been  ornamented  with  a  rustic  fence  by  the  soldiers 
of  the  32nd  Division.  We  erected  our  own  little  monu- 
ment without  molesting  the  one  that  had  been  left  by  the 
Germans.  It  is  fitting  that  enemy  and  friend  alike  should 
pay  tribute  to  heroism. 

The  Germans  had  not  retreated  ten  miles  before  the  ad- 
vance guard  of  the  French  civilian  population  began  coming 
in  to  take  possession  of  their  shattered  homes.  I  was  com- 
ing down  today  from  the  battlefield  whither  I  had  gone 
with  Emmet  Watson  and  Bill  Fernie  to  make  a  map  of 
the  graves  when  I  met  the  incoming  civilians  in  Villers  sur 
Fere.  Most  of  them  were  men  who  had  been  sent  ahead 
by  the  family  to  see  what  was  left.  But  occasionally  we 
met  a  stout  old  peasant  woman  pulling  a  small  cart  behind 
her  on  which  rested  all  her  earthly  substance,  or  a  hay-cart 
drawn  by  oxen  with  the  family  possessions  in  it  and  two 
or  three  chubby  youngsters  with  their  mother  perched  on 
top.  I  followed  a  middle  aged  farmer  and  his  son  into  one 
of  the  houses  near  the  church  and  we  made  our  inspection 


224  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

together.  All  the  plaster  had  been  knocked  off  the  walls 
and  the  glass  from  the  windows,  and  there  was  a  big  hole 
in  the  roof,  and  altogether  it  looked  anything  but  a  home, 
but  after  looking  it  all  over  the  young  man  said  to  his 
father,  with  a  satisfied  grunt,  "Pas  trop  demoli"  (hot  too 
badly  banged  up).  I  certainly  admired  the  optimism  and 
courage  of  people  who  could  take  up  their  lives  once  more 
with  cheerfulness  under  such  desperate  conditions. 

The  Germans  had  made  their  most  of  the  time  in  which 
they  had  possession  of  this  salient.  They  had  han^ested 
a  great  deal  of  the  grain  and  anything  else  that  was  already 
ripe  and  in  some  places  they  had  ransacked  the  houses  of 
any  goods  that  were  worth  while.  There  were  many  evi- 
dences, though,  that  they  had  no  idea  that  they  were  so 
soon  to  be  dislodged.  At  Seringes  they  had  installed  an 
electric  light  plant,  and  the  French  road  signs  had  been  sup- 
plemented with  the  large  legible  German  signs.  Their  sense 
of  security  was  the  cause  of  their  largest  losses  in  material, 
as  they  had  made  of  the  Forest  of  Fere  a  great  ammunition 
dump,  and  the  large  shells,  gas,  shrapnel,  high  explosives, 
were  left  behind  by  thousands. 

I  got  back  to  Chateau  Thierry  looking  for  hospitals  which 
might  contain  our  wounded  but  found  none  of  them,  as 
they  had  all  been  transferred  to  other  places,  no  one  knew 
exactly  where.  In  the  burying  ground  I  hit  upon  the  graves 
of  Sergeant  John  O'Neill  of  B  and  Sergeants  Peter  Grotty 
and  Bernard  McElroy  of  K  and  Walter  Wandless  of  H. 
The  city  already  presented  a  lively  appearance  w'ith  a  great 
deal  of  traffic,  not  all  of  it  military,  over  the  bridge  of  boats 
which  replaced  the  bridge  that  had  been  destroyed  during 
the  German  drive. 

Our  men  are  getting  more  and  more  restless  in  these  dirty 
woods  and  the  first  question  that  anybody  asks  is,  "When 
do  we  get  relieved."  I  stepped  into  the  woods  on  the  other 
side  of  the  road  to  visit  my  Alabama  friends  and  one  of 
their  fine  lads  voiced  the  common  mind  by  asking  whether 
the  govament  hadn't  othah  soldiehs  than  the  Fohty-Second 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  225 

Division.  I  answered,  "Well,  if  they're  using  you  so  much, 
it  is  your  own  fault."  "How  is  it  ouah  fault?"  demanded 
my  friend,  and  twenty  pairs  of  eyes  asked  the  same  ques- 
tion. "It's  your  fault  all  right ;  the  trouble  with  you  fellows 
is  that  you're  too  blamed  good." 

I  have  become  a  specialist  on  what  they  call  the  morale  of 
troops  and  as  I  go  around  I  find  that  the  morale  of  the 
men  in  this  division  is  still  very  high.  They  have  had  a 
tough  week  of  it  and  nearly  half  the  infantry  are  gone  while 
of  those  remaining  more  than  half  are  sick.  But  they  know 
that  they  have  whipped  the  enemy  on  his  chosen  ground  and 
they  feel  confident  that  if  they  only  get  rested  up  a  little  bit 
they  can  do  it  again  and  do  it  cheerfully. 

The  Quartermaster's  Department  has  helped  considera- 
bly by  fitting  us  all  out  with  new  clothes,  underwear,  shoes, 
everything  we  need,  and  the  food  supply  is  steady.  And 
Miss  Elsie  Janis  has  done  her  part,  too,  as  a  joy  producer 
by  coming  up  to  us  in  our  mud  and  desolation  and  giving 
a  Broadway  performance  for  an  audience  which  was  more 
wildly  appreciative  than  ever  acclaimed  her  on  the  street  of 
a  million  lights. 

The  long  desired  orders  for  relief  finally  arrived.  We 
marched  out  on  Sunday  morning,  August  nth.  I  had 
planned  with  Colonel  McCoy  to  have  my  Sunday  Service  a 
memorial  one  for  the  brave  lads  we  were  leaving  behind. 
He  had  me  set  up  my  altar  in  an  open  field  just  south  of 
the  forest  on  our  line  of  march  to  the  rear.  The  men,  fully 
equipped  for  the  march,  came  down  the  road,  turned  into 
the  field,  stripped  their  packs  and  formed  a  hollow  square 
around  tlie  altar.  After  Mass  I  preached  on  the  text, 
"Greater  love  than  this  no  man  hath  than  that  he  lay  down 
his  life  for  his  friends."  When  the  service  was  over  the 
regiment  took  the  road  again  and  began  its  march,  with 
the  band  in  advance  and  the  regimental  wagon  train  in  the 
rear. 

As  we  passed  through  Beauvardes  General  Menoher  and 
ofiicers  of  his  staff  were  in  front  of  Division  Headquarters. 


226  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Colonel  McCoy  passed  the  order  down  the  ranks,  the  band 
struck  up  the  regimental  air  of  "Garry  Owen"  and  the 
regiment  passed  in  review,  heads  up  and  chests  out  and 
stepping  out  with  a  martial  gait  as  if  they  were  parading 
at  Camp  Mills  and  not  returning  from  a  battlefield  where 
half  their  numbers  had  been  lost. 

Two  days  later  they  marched  through  Chateau  Thierry 
in  similar  fashion.  Colonel  McCoy  came  to  mess  with  a 
smile  f  f  pride  on  his  face  telling  us  he  had  encountered  an 
old  friend,  a  regular  army  officer  who  had  said  to  him, 
"What  is  that  outfit  that  passed  here  a  little  while  ago? 
It's  the  finest  looking  lot  of  infantry  I  have  seen  in  France." 
"That  is  the  165th  Infantry,  more  widely  known  to  fame 
as  the  69th  New  York,  and  I  am  proud  to  say  that  I  com- 
mand it." 

I  have  been  playing  truant  for  a  few  days.  I  had  been 
suffering  with  a  great  sense  of  fatigue.  Nothing  particular 
the  matter,  but  I  felt  as  if  I  were  running  on  four  flat 
tires  and  one  cylinder.  Two  of  the  War  Correspondents, 
Herbert  Corey  and  Lincoln  Eyre,  came  along  and  insisted 
on  bringing  me  down  to  their  place  in  Chateau  Thierry; 
and  General  Lenihan  brought  me  in  in  his  car.  Corey 
cooked  supper — a  regular  cordon  bleu  affair — and  Lincoln 
Eyre  gave  me  a  hot  bath  and,  like  Kipling's  soldier,  "God, 
I  needed  it  so."  Then  they  bundled  me  into  Tom  John- 
son's bed,  and  as  I  dropped  asleep  I  thought,  and  will  con- 
tinue to  think,  that  they  are  the  finest  fellows  in  the  world. 
They  were  ordered  out  next  morning  and  I  went  with  them 
for  a  couple  of  days  to  Bossuet's  old  episcopal  city  of 
Meaux,  where  I  had  a  fine  time  gossiping  with  Major  Mor- 
gan, Bozeman  Bulger  and  Arthur  Delaney  of  the  Censor's 
Bureau  and  Ray  Callahan,  Arthur  Ruhl  and  Herbert  Bailey, 
a  delightful  young  Englishman  who  writes  for  the  Daily 
Mail. 

I  rejoined  the  regiment  at  Saulcher}^ — somebody  says 
that  sounds  like  a  name  for  a  decadent  cocktail — and  found 
myself  housed  in  a  large  and  pleasant  villa,  the  garden  of 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  227 

which  looked  out  upon  vineyards  and  fields  down  to  the 
banks  of  the  Alarne.  It  was  one  of  the  pleasantest  places 
we  had  been  in  in  France.  The  weather  was  perfect,  and 
the  men  enjoyed  the  camping  out  in  their  shelter  tents,  es- 
pecially since  the  river  was  handy  for  a  swim.  The  whole 
thing  made  us  feel  more  like  campers  than  soldiers.  And 
by  the  time  we  had  gotten  well  rested  up  and  most  of  the 
cooties  washed  off,  we  had  forgotten  the  hard  days  that 
were  past  and  saw  only  the  bright  side  of  life  once  more. 

We  were  there  from  August  12th  to  i/th,  on  which  lat- 
ter date  we  entrained  at  Chateau  Thierry  to  go  to  our  new 
training  area.  This  was  down  in  the  Neuf chateau  dis- 
trict, and  to  get  to  it  by  the  railroad  we  were  using  we  went 
south  until  we  got  to  the  vicinity  of  Langres,  where  we  had 
spent  our  last  two  months  before  going  into  the  trench 
sector.  Regimental  headcjuarters  was  at  Goncourt  and  the 
regiment  was  accommodated  in  barracks  and  billets  in  that 
and  two  close  lying  villages.  The  towns  had  been  used  for 
some  time  by  American  troops  and  had  unusual  facilities 
for  bathing,  etc.  The  warm  reception  given  to  us  by  the 
townspeople  was  a  tribute  to  the  good  conduct  of  the  23rd 
Infantry  which  had  been  billetted  there  for  a  considerable 
period  before  occupying  the  front  lines. 

After  a  couple  of  days'  rest  the  men  were  started  on  a 
schedule  of  training  which  was  laid  out  for  four  weeks. 
Target  ranges  were  prepared  by  the  engineers  and  every- 
thing looked  like  a  long  stay.  The  training  was  neces- 
sary not  so  much  for  the  old-timers  as  for  the  replacements 
who  had  been  sent  in  to  take  the  places  of  the  men  we  had 
lost.  We  received  five  hundred  from  the  8ist  Division. 
We  had  known  cases  where  our  replacements  had  to  go 
into  line  without  anything  like  proper  training.  The  night 
we  left  Epieds  to  advance  into  action  at  the  Ourcq  we  re- 
ceived new  men,  some  of  whom  knew  very  little  about  a 
rifle  and  had  never  once  put  on  a  gas  mask ;  and  the  Cap- 
tains took  them  out  by  night  and  drilled  them  for  an  hour 
with  the  gas  masks  in  order  to  give  the  poor  fellows  some 


228  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

sort  of  a  chance  for  their  lives  if  exposed  to  danger  of  gas. 

The  second  day  that  I  was  in  Goncourt  Colonel  McCoy 
came  to  see  me  with  Major  Lawrence  and  Alajor  Donovan 
to  lay  down  the  law.  They  had  decided  that  I  was  to  go  to 
the  hospital  at  Vjttel,  where  Major  Donovan's  brother  was 
one  of  the  doctors,  "for  alterations  and  repairs."  General 
Llenoher,  with  his  usual  kindness,  sent  over  his  car  to  take 
me  there,  and  Father  George  Carpentier  was  brought  over 
from  the  Sanitary  Train  to  fill  my  place.  I  told  him  "Your 
name  is  French  but  it  has  the  advantage  of  being  the  one 
French  name  that  is  best  known  and  most  admired  by  our 
bunch  of  pugilists." 

I  have  had  a  nice  lazy  week  of  it  at  Vittel,  which  was  a 
French  watering  place  before  the  war,  the  hotels  and  parks 
now  being  given  over  to  American  soldiers.  I  hear  a  great 
deal  of  talk  about  a  coming  offensive  in  which  the  American 
Army  is  to  take  the  leading  part.  I  had  gotten  an  inkling 
of  it  before  from  a  French  source,  with  strictest  injunc- 
tions to  secrecy.  But  here  in  Vittel  I  find  it  discussed  by 
private  soldiers  on  the  park  benches  and  by  the  old  lady  who 
sells  newspapers.  If  it  is  a  secret,  all  the  world  seems  to 
know  it.  We  have  taken  every  step  to  make  the  Germans 
aware  of  it  except  that  of  putting  paid  advertisements  in 
the  Berlin  newspapers.  The  fact  is,  these  things  cannot 
be  kept  secret.  Here  in  Vittel  they  are  cleaning  out  all  the 
hospitals  of  wounded  and  tliat  means  that  a  big  battle  is 
expected  somewhere  in  this  vicinity  within  a  short  time. 
Then  up  along  the  line  ammunition  and  supply  trains  are 
busy  establishing  dumps,  and  the  drivers  are  naturally  talk- 
ing about  it  in  the  cafes,  so  that  evers^body  knows  that  the 
Americans  are  planning  something  big  and  the  place  where 
it  is  going  to  happen. 

VITTEL 

August  24th,  1918 

Major  Donovan   is   over  every   few  days   to  have   his 

wound  attended  to  and  incidentally  to  see  his  brother  Tim, 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  229 

who  is  a  surgeon  with  the  BufTalo  Unit.  Today  he  gave 
me  a  piece  of  news  that  came  as  a  shock  though  hardly  as 
a  surprise — the  orders  are  out  to  make  Colonel  McCoy  a 
Brigadier  General  and  he  is  to  leave  us.  He  has  been  with 
us  less  than  four  months  yet  I  feel  as  if  I  had  known  him 
for  forty  years,  and  this  war  is  going  to  be  a  different  sort 
of  thing  for  me  lacking  his  presence.  But  the  staying  thing 
about  life  is  thai  institutions  go  on  even  though  men  may 
pass.    My  thoughts  turned  to  the  regiment. 

'•Who  is  likely  to  be  Colonel  ?"  I  asked. 

"We  are  all  united  on  Mitchell,"  said  the  Major,  "and 
I  think  General  McCoy  will  be  able  to  arrange  it  for  us." 

"I  have  always  thought  that  General  McCoy  can  do  any- 
thing he  sets  out  to  do.  As  for  Mitchell,  with  the  possible 
exception  of  yourself,  Major,  there  is  no  man  I  had  rather 
see  have  it." 

"Oh,  Hell,  Father,  I  don't  want  to  be  Colonel.  As 
Lieutenant  Colonel  I  can  get  into  the  fight  and  that's  what 
I'm  here  for.     We  all  want  Mitchell." 

"You  are  a  selfish  creature.  Bill.  Did  you  ever  see  any- 
body more  contented  in  action  than  the  man  you  want  to 
tie  up  to  a  telephone?" 

"W^ell,  somebody  has  to  be  tied  up  to  the  telephone,  Mc- 
Coy didn't  like  it,  nor  MacArthur.  And  then,  as  you  know, 
they  can  always  find  some  reason  to  get  away  from  it  and 
have  a  little  excitement." 


VITTEL 

August  29th,  1918 

The  orders  have  come  already  to  move  up  to  the  next 
battle  area.  Instead  of  having  a  month  for  rest  and  train- 
ing the  Division  has  had  but  ten  days  in  its  new  area. 
Orders  came  in  on  the  28th  and  the  regiments  moved  out  on 
the  29th,  our  headquarters  being  at  Gendreville.  On  the 
next  day  they  moved  to  Viocourt,  the  2nd  and  3rd  bat- 
talions being  at  Courcelles.     Major  Lawrence  came  to  see 


230  Fx\THER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

me  at  the  hospital  to  tell  me  about  the  new  move  and  I 
obtained  permission  to  leave  and  rejoin  my  regiment.  I 
shall  always  have  a  warm  place  in  my  heart  for  the  doctors 
and  nurses  of  the  Buffalo  and  Westchester  County  Units. 


VIOCOURT 

September  ist,  1918 

I  walked  into  Division  Headquarters  at  Chatenois  today 
on  my  business  as  Senior  Chaplain.  I  sent  off  a  couple  of 
telegrams  to  the  G.  H.  O.  Chaplains  about  a  Protestant 
chaplain  that  I  want  them  to  send  for  the  Alabamas  and 
also  stirring  them  up  about  a  Protestant  chaplain  that  I 
had  been  asking  them  for  a  long  time  for  my  own  regiment. 
Another  telegram  went  to  the  K.  of  C.  at  Paris  to  send  a 
priest  to  look  after  Catholics  in  the  Illinois  and  Indiana 
artillery  regiments,  as  the  chaplains  there  are  anxious  to 
have  one.  Aly  final  inquiry  was  about  transportation  to 
Toul  for  Jewish  members  of  the  Division  in  order  to  have 
them  celebrate  their  approaching  feast.  Sergeant  Marcus 
looked  up  at  me  and  grinned :  "Say,  Father  Duff}^  aren't 
you  glad  you  have  no  Buddhists  to  look  after?"  He  added 
that  the  adjutant  had  a  surprise  in  store  for  me. 

He  had — two  official  announcements,  one,  that  the  corps 
commander  had  made  me  a  major  and  the  other  that  I  had 
been  cited  for  the  D.  S.  C.  Being  a  Llajor  has  no  particular 
thrills  to  it,  except  no  doubt  when  I  come  to  sign  my  pay 
vouchers ;  but  there  is  no  man  living  who  can  truthfully 
say  that  it  means  nothing  to  him  to  receive  the  bronze  cross 
and  red,  white  and  blue  bar  of  our  Army.  To  everybody, 
I  think,  the  greatest  satisfaction  comes  not  from  vvhat  it 
means  to  himself  but  from  the  gratification  it  will  give  his 
friends.  Another  feeling  uppermost  in  my  mjnd  was  one  of 
grateful  affection  for  Colonel  McCoy  because  I  knew  that 
it  was  he  who  had  recommended  me  both  for  the  rank  and 
the  distinction.  I  wrote  to  him  "The  British  reward  their 
military  heroes  with  a  peerage,  a  pension,  and  a  tomb  in 


AFTER  THE  BATTLE  231 

Westminster  Abbey.  You  have  gotten  for  me  the  Ameri- 
can equivalent  for  two  of  them — the  distinction  and  the 
emohiments — and  it  only  remains  for  you  to  fix  it  up  so 
that  I  can  have  a  tomb  in  St.  Patrick's  Cathedral.  All  that 
is  necessary  to  give  me  a  right  to  that  is  to  make  me 
Archbishop  of  New  York;  Cardinal,  if  you  insist.  I  never 
knew  you  to  fail  in  anything  you  went  after  so  I  shall  con- 
sider this  matter  as  settled." 

We  remained  in  Viocourt  six  days  and  then  began  our 
journey  north  by  night  marches.  The  4th  of  September 
was  spent  in  the  Bois  de  Raidon.  On  the  5th  of  Septem- 
ber the  whole  regiment  was  together  at  Bulligny.  On  the 
6th,  still  marching  by  night,  we  were  at  Foug,  and  Septem- 
ber 7th  found  us  at  Boucq,  where  we  spent  two  days. 

Here  we  had  the  honor  of  a  visit  from  the  Commander 
in  Chief.  General  Pershing  had  come  on  for  the  ceremony 
of  presenting  Distinguished  Service  Crosses  to  those  who 
had  been  cited  in  our  Division,  and  the  ceremony  took  place 
in  a  field  to  the  northeast  of  our  village  of  Boucq.  The 
recipients  from  our  Regiment  were  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Donovan,  Major  Reilley,  who  quite  overshadowed  me. 
Captain  Merle-Smith,  Lieutenant  William  Spencer,  Lieu- 
tenant John  J.  Williams,  Sergeant  Frank  Gardella,  Corp- 
oral John  McLaughlin,  Corporal  Martin  Higgins,  and 
Burr  Finkle.  Captain  Ryan  and  others  who  had  been  cited 
were  still  in  the  hospital,  while  others  were  of  those  who 
had  perished  on  the  field.  A  complete  list  will  be  given 
in  another  place. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE 

The  field  orders  for  the  attack  on  the  St.  Mihiel  salient 
were  received  on  September  loth,  the  date  not  being  speci- 
fied. Our  division  was  to  attack  as  part  of  the  4th  U.  S. 
Army  Corps  of  the  1st  U.  S.  Army;  and  we  were  given 
the  honor  of  being  made  the  point  of  the  arrow  which 
was  to  pierce  through  the  center  of  the  salient  along  the 
base  of  the  triangle  that  was  to  be  cut  off.  The  89th 
Division  was  on  our  right  and  the  ist  Division  on  cur  left, 
with  the  3rd  in  Army  reserve. 

Our  Division  was  to  be  formed  with  both  brigades 
abreast,  the  83rd  being  on  the  left  of  the  84th.  The  relative 
places  of  regiments  with  regard  to  each  other  was  to  be 
in  the  same  order  in  which  they  fought  at  the  Ourcq — • 
from  left  to  right :  Ohios,  New  Yorks,  Alabamas  and  lowas. 
Each  regiment  was  to  have  one  battalion  in  the  first  line 
and  one  in  the  second,  the  remaining  battalions  acting  as 
brigade  or  division  reserves.  Battery  F,  149th  F.  A.  was 
to  follow  up  with  the  infantry  of  our  brigade  after  their 
capture  of  the  first  position.  The  brigade  had  also  the  co- 
operation of  a  ba'ttalion  of  our  Engineers  for  road  and 
bridge  work,  one  platoon  of  the  first  gas  regiment  and  two 
groups  of  French  Schneider  Tanks. 

On  the  night  of  September  loth  we  moved  forward  to 
the  vicinity  of  Mandres,  where  we  relieved  elements  of  the 
89th  Division  which  were  transferred  further  to  the  right. 
Our  headquarters  on  September  nth  were  at  Hamonville, 
not  far  from  Seicheprey  where  the  26th  Division  had  played 
a  savage  game  of  give  and  take  with  the  Germans  when 
they  held  the  trenches  last  Spring. 

232 


THE  ST.  MmiEL  OFFENSIVE  g33 

Copies  were  issued  of  the  very  elaborate  plans  which  had 
been  prepared  by  Army  Chiefs  of  Staff  outlining  with 
great  definiteness  the  part  that  each  element  of  our  Army 
had  to  play  in  the  work  that  lay  ahead  of  them. 

The  men  were  encamped  in  a  forest  of  low  trees,  a  most 
miserable  spot.  It  had  been  showering  and  wet  all  the  week 
and  we  were  living  like  paleozoic  monsters,  in  a  world  of 
muck  and  slime.  The  forest  roads  were  all  plowed  by  the 
wagon  wheels  and  when  one  stepped  off  them  conditions 
were  no  better,  for  the  whole  place  was  really  a  swamp.  I 
made  my  rounds  during  the  afternoon  and  got  the  men  to- 
gether for  what  I  call  a  silent  prayer  meeting.  I  told  them 
how  easy  it  was  to  set.  themselves  right  with  God,  suggesting 
an  extra  prayer  for  a  serene  mind  and  a  stout  heart  in  time 
of  danger;  and  then  they  stood  around  me  in  a  rough  semi- 
circle, caps  in  hand  and  heads  bowed,  each  man  saying  his 
prayers  in  his  own  way.  I  find  this  simple  ceremony  much 
more  effective  than  formal  preaching. 

When  I  got  back  to  headquarters  I  found  my  own  staf¥ 
very  considerably  increased.  Father  Hanley  had  come 
back  a  couple  of  days  before.  The  rumors  of  approaching 
action  were  all  over  France,  so,  sniffing' the  battle  from 
afar,  he  got  the  hospital  authorities  to  let  him  out  and  rejoin 
his  regiment  for  the  coming  fight.  I  kept  Father  Carpen- 
tier  attached  to  the  regiment  for  the  time  being  until  I 
could  get  the  Protestant  chaplain  that  I  had  been  petition- 
ing for  so  long.  Father  Hanley  still  had  a  perceptible  limp 
and  was  moving  around  with  the  aid  of  a  stick  so  I  told 
him  that  he  would  have  to  look  after  the  hospital  center 
{Triage)  while  the  fight  was  on,  a  commission  that  he  took 
with  no  good  grace.  To  Father  Carpentier  I  gave  a  roving 
commission  to  look  after  Catholics  in  the  Ohio  and  Ala- 
bama regiments,  a  task  for  which  his  zeal  and  endurance 
especially  qualified  him. 

Now  I  found  two  more  Chaplains  on  my  handg — one 
from  the  Knights  of  Columbus,  Father  Moran,  an  Irish 
Priest,  and  one  assigned  to  the  regiment,  Chaplain  Merrill 


234        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

J.  Holmes  of  the  M.  E.  Church.  I  liked  him  on  sight  and 
we  were  not  long  in  getting  on  a  basis  of  cordiality  which 
will  make  our  work  together  very  pleasant.  It  was  too  late 
to  send  the  extra  chaplains  to  other  regiments  as  we  were 
even  then  getting  ready  to  move  forward  into  line,  so  I 
decided  to  keep  them  all  under  my  wing.  I  told  the  lieuten- 
ants of  the  Headquarters  Company  that  it  would  not  be  my 
fault  if  they  did  not  all  get  to  Heaven  because  we  had  five 
chaplains  along.  "Five  Chaplains,"  said  Lieutenant  Charles 
Parker.  "Great  Heavens!  there  won't  be  a  thing  left  for 
any  of  the  rest  of  us  to  eat." 

The  terrain  which  was  to  be  the  object  of  the  attack  of 
our  three  divisions  was  completely  dominated  on  the  left 
by  the  frowning  heights  of  Mont  Sec;  and  if  they  had  been 
held  in  force  by  the  enemy  artillery  it  would  have  exposed 
our  whole  army  corps  to  a  flanking  fire  which  would  soon 
make  progress  impossible.  It  fell  to  the  1st  Division  to 
make  their  advance  along  the  mountain  side. 

The  ground  over  which  we  were  to  pass  was  for  the  most 
part  fairly  level  up  as  far  as  the  twin  towns  of  Maizerais 
and  Essey,  to  the  left  of  which  the  Rupt  de  Mad  made  its 
way  through  swamps  at  the  base  of  the  hill  which  was 
crowned  by  these  two  villages.  A  number  of  woods  dotted 
the  surface;  one  of  them,  the  Bois  de  Remieres,  stood  di- 
rectly in  front  of  our  advance.  No  Man's  Land  at  this  point 
was  seven  or  eight  hundred  yards  wide;  and  the  Gennan 
trenches,  as  we  afterwards  found,  were  not  in  very  good 
condition,  though  there  was  plenty  of  wire  standing  both 
here  and  at  other  points  that  were  prepared  for  defence 
We  were  to  jump  off  at  the  east  of  Seicheprey,  and  regi- 
mental headquarters  and  dressing  station  were  established 
by  Colonel  Mitchell  and  Major  Lawrence  in  the  Bois  de 
Jury,  not  far  to  the  rear. 

We  moved  up  to  our  jump-off  point  on  the  night  of  Sep- 
tember nth.  The  rain  was  falling  in  torrents.  The  roads 
were  like  a  swamp  and  the  night  was  so  dark  that  a  man 
could  not  see  the  one  in  front  of  him.     And  of  course  no 


f 
THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  235 

lights  could  be  lit.  The  road  could  not  be  left  free  for 
the  foot  soldiers,  but  was  crowded  with  ammunition  wag- 
ons, combat  wagons,  signal  outfits  and  all  the  impedimenta 
of  war.  Time  and  again  men  had  the  narrowest  escapes 
from  being  run  down  in  the  dark,  and  scarcely  anybody 
escaped  the  misfortune  of  tripping  and  falling  full  length 
in  the  mud.  It  is  a  miracle  of  fate  or  of  organization  that 
the  units  were  able  to  find  their  positions  on  such  a  night, 
but  they  all  got  where  they  belonged  and  found  the  lines 
neatly  taped  by  Colonel  Johnson's  excellent  body  of  en- 
gineers. The  1st  Battalion  was  in  the  front  line  commanded 
by  Lieutenant  Colonel  Donovan,  who  was  not  willing  to 
let  his  newly  conferred  rank  deprive  him  of  the  opportunity 
of  leading  his  battalion  in  another  fight.  The  2nd  bat- 
talion under  Major  Anderson  was  in  the  second  line,  and 
picked  men  from  each  of  its  companies  were  given  the  task 
of  following  close  behind  the  ist,  as  moppers  up,  i.  e.,  to 
overcome  points  of  resistance  which  might  be  passed  over, 
take  charge  of  prisoners,  etc. 

The  men  shivered  through  the  night  in  the  muddy 
trenches  waiting  in  patient  misery  for  morning  and  the 
orders  to  attack.  At  i  :oo  A.  M.  September  12th,  our  ar- 
tillery opened  fire  on  the  enemy.  We  had  expected  a  night 
of  terrific  noise  like  that  which  preceded  the  German  offen- 
sive on  July  15th,  but  the  present  one  was  not  nearly  so 
fierce,  though  it  would  have  seemed  a  wonderful  show  if 
we  had  not  heard  the  other  one.  In  July  the  guns  on  both 
sides  were  shooting  everything  they  had  without  cessation. 
But,  here,  there  was  no  enemy  counter  preparation  fire  and 
our  own  fire  was  more  deliberate. 

Dawn  broke  on  a  cold,  windy  day  and  a  cloud  darkened 
sky.  Donovan  had  been  moving  up  and  down  his  line  with 
a  happy  smile  on  his  face  (unless  he  detected  anything  out 
of  order)  telling  the  men:  "There's  nothing  to  it.  It  will 
be  a  regular  walk-over.  It  will  not  be  as  bad  as  some  of 
the  cross-country  runs  I  gave  you  in  your  training  period." 
And  when  H  hour  arrived  at  5  :oo  A.  M.,  the  feeling  of  the 


236  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

men  was  one  of  gladness  at  the  prospect  of  getting  into 
action. 

Their  way  was  prepared  by  a  screen  of  smoke  and  a 
rolHng  barrage  delivered  by  our  artillery.  Tanks  advanced 
with  our  infantry  crawling  like  iron-clad  hippopotomi  over 
the  wire  in  front  to  make  a  passage-way.  Some  of  them 
came  to  grief  on  account  of  the  rain-softened  ground,  the 
edges  of  a  trench  giving  way  under  the  weight  of  a  tank 
and  standing  it  on  its  nose  in  the  bottom.  During  the  two 
days  of  advance  we  were  well  supplied  with  aeroplane  serv- 
ice and  possessed  undoubted  superiority  in  the  air. 

The  four-inch  Stokes  Mortars  had  been  put  in  position  to 
lay  dov/n  a  smoke  barrage  and  the  barrage  began  to  pound 
the  enemy  front  line  at  the  zero  hour.  The  shells  whistled 
overhead  much  closer  than  they  had  done  during  the  artil- 
lery preparation  and  broke  on  the  enemy  trenches  kicking 
up  red  fire  and  black  clouds  where  they  hit.  It  was  raining 
slightly,  there  was  a  mist,  and  dawn  was  not  yet  breaking 
when  the  machine  gun  barrage  which  took  the  men  over 
began  to  fire.  The  men  began  to  whisper  among  themselves 
"That's  our  stuff;  no  it's  not,  yes  it  is."  All  the  sounds  of . 
battle  were  heard ;  the  artillery,  the  small  guns,  and  then, 
a  little  too  soon,  the  Stokes  Mortars  in  front  of  the  Ala- 
bamas  starting  their  fire-works  which  illuminated  the  entire 
front  when  the  thermite  shells  exploded. 

Then  everybody  jumped  and  started  forward.  The 
Bois  de  Remieres  lay  in  front  of  the  right  flank  of  our  first 
battalion  and  as  they  moved  forward,  the  flank  units  gave 
way  to  the  left  to  pass  around  instead  of  through  the  woods. 
For  a  moment  they  lost  direction.  The  support  companies 
seemed  to  hesitate  at  the  first  belt  of  wire  and  began  pick- 
ing their  way  rather  too  fastidiously  through  it.  Lieutenant 
Harold  L.  Allen  was  with  the  headquarters  group  which 
consisted  of  a  melange  of  runners,  pioneers,  liaison  men, 
snipers,  etc.  He  tells  about  Donovan  running  back  from 
the  front  line  shouting  to  the  men  "Get  forward,  there,  what 
the  hell  do  you  think  this  is,  a  wake?"    These  words  seemed 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  237 

to  inspire  Captain  Siebert  and  as  the  lines  moved  forward 
he  shouted  loud  and  profane  encouragement  to  the  ma- 
chine gun  carriers  burdened  with  boxes  of  ammunition  and 
struggHng  forward  through  the  tangle  of  trenches  and 
broken  wire. 

Machine  gun  resistance  was  met  on  the  enemy's  second 
line.  The  assault  waves  deployed  and  began  firing.  Auto- 
matic teams  and  snipers  crawled  forward  to  advantageous 
positions.  Donovan,  with  his  usual  disregard  of  danger 
(never  thinking  of  it  in  fact,  but  only  occupied  with  getting 
through),  moved  back  and  forth  along  the  line  giving  direc- 
tions, and  the  enemy  resistance  did  not  last  long,  most  of 
their  men  surrendering.  Donovan  led  his  men  at  heart- 
breaking speed  over  the  hills,  smashing  all  resistance  before 
them  and  sending  in  small  groups  of  prisoners.  St.  Baus- 
sant  was  taken  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet  and  the  line  swept 
on.  On  the  hill  overlooking  Maizerais  the  battalion  was 
halted  once  more  by  machine  gun  fire,  and  a  battery  of 
artillery  behind  the  village  less  than  five  hundred  yards 
away.  The  Germans  had  evidently  decided  to  make  some 
sort  of  a  stand,  taking  advantage  of  the  hill  and  the  protec- 
tion of  the  Rupt  de  Mad.  But  Donovan  with  about  thirty 
men  jumped  into  the  river,  made  his  way  across  it  under 
fire,  and  when  the  Germans  saw  this  determined  assault 
from  their  flank  they  threw  up  their  hands  and  cried  "Kam- 
erad." 

They  attempted  further  resistance  near  Essey  where  they 
had  machine  gun  pits  in  front  of  the  village,  but  the  re- 
sistance was  quickly  reduced  by  the  aid  of  a  tank  and  the 
village  was  cleared  of  the  enemy.  Donovan  kept  the  bat- 
talion in  the  stone  walled  gardens  on  the  outskirts  of  the 
town.  Our  own  barrage  was  still  pounding  the  village,  for 
Essey  represented  the  objective  of  the  "First  Phase,  First 
Day,"  and  some  of  our  men  who  wandered  into  town  were 
hit  by  flying  stone  from  the  walls  of  houses. 

Prisoners  began  to  come  in  and  a  prisoner  park  was  es- 
tablished near  a  big  tree  on  the  road  leading  into  the  village. 


238  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

French  civilians  were  still  living  in  this  village,  having  spent 
the  period  of  bombardment  in  a  big  dugout — the  first  ci- 
vilians that  we  had  the  pleasure  of  actually  liberating.  They 
laughed  and  wept  and  kissed  everybody  in  sight  and  drew 
on  their  slender  stock  of  provisions  to  feed  the  hungry  men. 
The  soldiers  began  wandering  everywhere  looking  for  sou- 
venirs. Corporal  Kearin  was  in  charge  of  the  prison  park. 
All  the  captives  were  from  the  regiments  of  the  loth  Di- 
vision, except  a  few  from  an  attached  Minenwerfer  com- 
pany and  an  artillery  regiment.  They  were  eager  for  frater- 
nization and  chatted  and  laughed  with  their  captors.  The 
men  of  the  support  battalions  and  from  the  units  on  our 
right  and  left,  attracted  by  the  town,  began  to  straggle  over. 
It  resembled  a  County  Fair,  the  prisoner  park  being  the  pop- 
ular attraction  of  the  day.  Americans  literally  swarmed 
around  the  prisoners  in  idle  curiosity  while  others  rum- 
maged through  the  German  billets  and  headquarters  look- 
ing for  pistols,  maps,  German  post-cards  and  letters — any- 
thing that  would  do  for  a  souvenir. 

However,  this  did  not  last  long,  Donovan  had  his  bat- 
talion out  and  going  for  the  objective  which  was  marked 
as  "Second  Phase,  First  Day,"  which  lay  beyond  the  next 
town  of  Pannes;  and  Anderson,  coming  in  with  the  bulk  of 
the  2nd  Battalion,  imposed  his  rigorous  discipline  on  those 
whose  business  it  was  to  be  in  town.  He  certainly  was  not 
loved  for  knocking  in  the  head  of  a  barrel  of  beer  which 
some  of  the  fellows  had  found  (and,  by  the  way,  there  can 
be  no  better  proof  of  the  rapidity  with  which  the  Germans 
evacuated  the  town  than  the  fact  that  they  had  left  it  be- 
hind). 

Donovan  met  with  further  resistance  when  he  arrived 
before  Pannes  about  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  He 
called  for  artillery  and  tanks  and  filtered  up  his  men  along 
the  trees  on  the  edge  of  the  road  while  the  Ohios  advanced 
on  the  left  and  the  Alabamas  make  a  flanking  movement 
against  the  town  from  its  right.  They  soon  had  the  op- 
position broken  and  by  i  :45  P.  M.  our  advanced  elements. 


AT   QUENTIN   ROOSEVELT  S   GRAVE 

THE   CENTRAL   FIGURE   IS   COLONEL  m'COY 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  239 

widely  extended,  were  proceeding  from  Pannes  towards 
the  Bois  de  Thiaucourt,  and  at  i  :55  the  objective  "Second 
Phase,  First  Day"  was  occupied  by  the  165th  Infantry. 

The  whole  day  it  had  been  a  wild  gallop  with  occasional 
breathing  spells  when  the  Germans  put  up  some  resistance. 
From  the  rising  ground  around  Essey  men  looked  back, 
and  towards  the  west  and  east  where  the  ist  and  the  89th 
were  also  moving  forward.  It  was  like  a  moving  picture 
battle.  Tanks  were  crawling  up  along  the  muddy  roads  and 
khaki  colored  figures  could  be  seen  moving  about  in  ones 
and  twos  and  fours  along  the  edges  of  the  woods  and  across 
the  grassy  plains.  Toward  the  rear  were  passing  ever 
larger  groups  of  prisoners  in  their  blue  gray  uniforms, 
carrying  their  personal  belongings  and  in  many  cases  their 
own  wounded  as  well  as  ours  on  improvised  litters.  Over- 
head the  shells  were  still  screaming  from  our  heavy  artil- 
lery with  a  good  deal  of  answering  fire  from  the  German 
batteries,  which  caused  most  of  our  losses. 

The  prisoners  were  mainly  Austrians  and  Austrian  Slavs. 
They  had  not  been  very  keen  about  the  war  at  any  time 
and  were  made  less  so  on  finding  that  they  had  been  left 
behind  after  the  bulk  of  the  army  had  withdrawn.  Many 
of  them  had  been  in  the  United  States,  and  the  first  ques- 
tion that  one  of  them  asked  was  "Can  I  go  back  now  to 
Sharon,  Pa?"  One  of  them  was  found  seated  in  a  dugout 
with  a  bottle  of  Schnapps  and  a  glass.  He  immediately 
offered  a  drink  to  his  captor  saying  "I  don't  drink  it  myself, 
but  I  thought  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to  offer  to  an  Ameri- 
can who  would  find  me." 

During  the  afternoon  of  the  12th  the  brigade  P.  C.  was 
moved  to  Essey,  regimental  P.  C.  to  Pannes.  The  ist  bat- 
talion organized  their  position  just  south  of  the  Bois  de 
Thiaucourt  which  was  held  by  patrols  who  took  more  pris- 
oners; the  2nd  battalion  about  1,000  yards  further  back  on 
the  reverse  slope  of  a  hill;  and  the  3rd  battalion  just  outside 
the  town. 

The  next  day's  task  was  still  easier.     Donovan's  men 


^40  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

jumped  ofiF  at  6:io  A.  M.  with  Companies  B  and  C  in  the 
lead  and  A  and  D  in  support.  Their  patrols  to  the  front 
at  the  time  reported  no  contact  with  the  enemy.  Major 
Reilley  with  the  3rd  Battalion  was  sent  as  Division  Reserve 
for  the  1st  Division  br.t  was  later  ordered  back.  The  ist 
Battalion,  followed  by  the  2nd,  pushed  through  the  Bois 
de  Thiaucourt  and  the  Bois  de  Beney  capturing  a  couple  of 
prisoners  and  meeting  with  no  resistance.  At  the  Seloasto- 
pol  Farm  a  woman  told  them  that  the  Germans  were  just 
ahead  and  retreating.  The  advance  of  our  men  was  some- 
what delayed  by  a  gun  in  our  supporting  artillery  which 
kept  firing  short  and  endangering  the  men,  as  one  of  the 
greatest  difficulties  in  a  rapid  advance  such  as  was  made  at 
^t.  Mihiel  is  that  of  maintaining  liaison  with  the  rear.  By 
half  past  nine  they  had  captured  the  enemy's  supply  depot 
along  the  railway  track,  with  the  neighboring  village  of  St 
Benoit  and  the  Chateau  St.  Benoit.  It  was  a  foot  race  all 
the  way  between  the  four  infantry  regiments  and  our  fel- 
lows claim  they  won  it  by  a  good  half  hour,  but  I  haven't 
heard  yet  what  the  others  have  to  say.  I  only  know  that 
if  I  ever  have  to  follow  up  our  infantry  again  in  such  an 
attack  I  am  going  to  wait  for  an  express  train. 

One  thing  that  stands  out  most  impressively  in  the  mem- 
ories of  the  165th  regarding  this  action  is  the  devotion  and 
courage  of  one  of  our  former  commanding  officers.  The 
dugout  where  Lieutenant  Colonel  Donovan  established  his 
temporary  headquartres  on  the  night  of  September  Ii-I2th, 
was  ver}'  small  and  very  crowded.  Every  officer  command- 
ing a  unit  of  the  auxiliary  arms  crowded  into  it  to  avoid 
the  nasty  drizzle  and  darkness  outside.  The  room  was  full 
of  smoke,  some  of  which  managed  to  get  outside  as  officer 
after  officer  came  in  to  report  the  position  of  his  unit.  It 
was  like  the  headquarters  of  an  army  corps.  Parker  of  the 
one-pound  cannons  was  perched  on  the  upper  deck  of  a 
bunk  flanked  by  Siebert  of  the  machine  guns  and  a  French 
Lieutenant  who  had  come  in  to  report  that  the  accompany- 
ing tanks  were  ready.     Lieutenants  Allen  and  Betty  were 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  241 

trying  to  carry  out  Donovan's  numerous  orders.  Captain 
Stone  of  the  149th  Field  Artillery  pushed  his  way  into  the 
crowded  room  and  reported  to  Donovan  that  his  battery  had 
been  detailed  to  roll  forward  with  the  assaulting  infantry. 
There  was  some  conversation  between  them  as  to  the  condi- 
tions of  the  roads  near  Seicheprey  and  the  possibility  of 
having  tlie  battery  follow  close  behind  the  assault,  the  num- 
ber of  available  rounds  of  ammunition  with  the  guns  and 
the  chance  of  delay  in  getting  them  forward  over  No  Man's 
Land.  The  conversation  continued  for  a  few  minutes  and 
was  ended  by  Donovan  saying,  "Well,  we  have  not  done  it 
before  but  we'll  give  it  a  whirl  this  time." 

Just  then  INIajor  Lawrence  opened  the  door  and  called 
"Colonel,  here's  an  old  friend  of  yours."  It  w^as  Colonel 
Hine.  Wet  and  muddy  and  tired  but  evidently  delighted  to 
be  back  with  the  old  regiment.  Donovan  gave  him  an  en- 
thusiastic welcome  as  did  all  the  rest,  although  Betty  whis- 
pered to  Allen  in  a  humorous  grouch  "Fll  bet  Donovan  will 
want  us  to  get  a  room  and  bath  for  him" — referring  to 
the  Colonel's  practice  of  inviting  everyone  in  to  dinner  or 
to  share  quarters  no  matter  where  he  was  or  what  he  might 
have,  and  then  putting  it  up  to  the  staff  to  provide.  Every- 
body naturally  thought  that  Colonel  Hine  had  come  to  view 
the  battle  from  the  regimental  observation  post  on  the  hill 
near  the  Bois  de  Jury  but  later  in  the  night  when  they  moved 
down  to  the  parallel  of  departure  Colonel  Hine  was  still 
along,  sharing  the  experiences  of  the  rest  of  them,  stumb- 
ling into  shell  holes  and  tripping  over  barbed  wire  in  the 
darkness.  When  they  went  over  in  the  morning  he  was 
still  there,  and  with  the  first  wave ;  and  all  through  that  day's 
fight  and  the  next,  he  fought  along  by  the  side  of  his  old 
men,  who  conceived  an  admiration  for  him  in  their  loyal 
souls  that  nothing  will  ever  efface. 

Colonel  Hine  had  obtained  leave  from  his  duties  in  order 
to  satisfy  his  desire  of  going  through  a  big  battle  with  his 
beloved  69th.  It  was  a  unique  compliment  to  the  regiment 
itself.     The  regiment  appreciates  it  as  such,  but  it  dwells 


242  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

more  on  the  soldierly  ardor  and  high  courage  of  its  first 
Colonel,  who,  though  he  had  been  transferred  to  less  dan- 
gerous duties,  found  his  way  back  to  us  and  fought  as  a  vol- 
unteer private  in  the  regiment  he  had  commanded.  Such 
deeds  as  this  are  set  forth  in  the  story-books  of  history  as 
an  inspiration  to  the  youth  of  the  land. 

In  picking  up  stories  of  the  fight  I  got  one  from  Lieuten- 
ant Allen  which  I  have  jotted  down  as  he  gave  it  to  me, 
"We  came  in  front  of  Essey.  Here  there  was  a  hill  marked 
on  the' aeroplane  photographs  and  maps  which  were  issued 
before  the  attack  as  'Dangerous,  go  to  the  right  and  left.' 
As  we  came  over  the  top  of  this  hill  and  advanced  on  its 
forward  slope  the  battalion  drew  machine  gun  fire  from 
the  enemy  guns  disposed  in  pits  in  front  of  the  village.  I  was 
out  in  front  in  a  shell-hole  with  two  snipers.  One  of  them 
I  sent  back  to  Donovan  w^ith  a  message;  the  other  began 
firing  on  the  enemy  who  now  began  to  run  back  into  the 
village.  In  an  adjoining  shell-hole  a  few  feet  away,  a  sol- 
dier from  our  battalion  sold  a  German  Luger  Pistol  to  an 
officer  from  some  other  regiment  who  had  wandered  from 
his  sector,  for  thirty-five  francs.  A  French  tank  caught 
up  to  us  at  this  stage  of  the  fight  and  moved  down  the  hill 
until  it  w^as  in  front  of  the  shell-hole  where  I  was.  I 
rapped  on  the  side  of  his  turret  and  called  to  the  pilot,  who 
reversed  the  turret  and  while  the  bullets  slapped  the  side  of 
his  tank,  opened  the  window.  He  was  a  dapper  little 
Frenchman  with  the  ends  of  his  moustache  waxed  in  points, 
and  was  clean  and  smiling.  I  gave  him  a  target  in  front 
of  the  town  and  he  fired  several  round  at  a  mass  of  retreat- 
ing Boches  hurrying  over  the  next  hill.  Opening  the 
window  again,  he  smiled  and  said  'How's  that?'  tlien  he 
went  lumbering  on." 

As  the  first  battalion  was  making  its  advance  during  the 
second  day  it  was  held  up  in  front  of  Sebastopol  Farm 
by  our  own  barrage  which  had  not  yet  lifted.  While  wait- 
ing there  they  saw  a  French  peasant  woman  with  a  small 
boy  grasping  her  hand  running  through  the  shell  fire  from 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  243 

the  direction  of  the  farm.  When  questioned,  she  was  in  a 
great  rage  against  the  Boches  and  reported  that  a  battahon 
of  their  troops  had  evacuated  St.  Benoit  during  the  night. 
She  also  gave  the  welcome  information  that  there  were 
supplies  of  food  in  the  farm  and  was  very  grateful  to  the 
Americans  for  releasing  her  from  four  years  of  captivity. 
She  was  the  only  woman  that  we  saw  actually  on  the  battle- 
field during  the  war. 

When  our  fellows  reached  St.  Benoit  they  found  that 
the  Germans  had  started  a  fire  in  the  Chateau,  but  it  was 
quickly  extinguished.  The  church  too,  had  been  set  on  fire 
and  was  beyond  saving.  When  Jim  Barry  of  C.  Company 
saw  it  blazing  he  shouted  "Glory  be  to  God,  those  devils 
have  burnt  the  church.  Let's  see  what  we  can  save  out  of 
it."  With  Tierney  and  Boyle  and  others  following  after 
he  ran  into  the  burning  building  and  carried  out  statues 
and  candelabra  which  they  deposited  carefully  outside. 
.Having  finished  their  pious  work  they  began  to  remember 
that  they  were  hungry,  Barry  took  from  his  musette  bag 
some  German  potatoes  which  he  had  stored  there  in  place 
of  grenades  that  had  been  used  up  in  action,  and  said,  "Well 
we  have  done  what  we  could,  and  now  we've  got  a  good  fire 
here,  and  we  might  as  well  use  it."  They  stuck  the  potatoes 
on  the  ends  of  their  bayonets  and  roasted  them  in  the  em- 
bers. Just  then  another  party  came  along  with  some  bottled 
beer  that  they  had  salvaged  from  the  German  supplies  in 
Pannes,  so  they  picnicked  merrily  in  the  square  in  front  of 
the  blazing  temple. 

It  was  well  for  all  of  us  that  the  Germans  had  departed 
so  suddenly  that  they  left  supplies  behind,  because  it  was 
an  almost  impossible  task  to  get  the  kitchens  and  ration 
wagons  through,  on  account  not  only  of  the  poor  condition 
of  the  roads  but  of  the  congestion  of  traffic.  We  never  saw 
a  worse  jam  in  the  whole  war  than  on  the  main  road  from 
Seicheprey  to  Pannes — tanks,  guns  and  caissons,  ammuni- 
tion wagons,  trucks,  infantry  trains,  all  trying  to  get  for- 
ward along  one  narrow  road,  and  the  whole  line  held  up  if 


244  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

a  single  vehicle  got  stuck ;  mounted  men  and  foot  soldiers 
trailed  along  the  edge  of  this  procession  often  having  to 
flounder  through  the  swamps  of  the  Rupt  de  Mad. 

The  situation  became  dangerous  towards  evening  of  the 
second  day  when  a  large  squadron  of  enemy  battle  planes 
swooped  down  on  our  own,  and  after  the  fiercest  contest  I 
have  ever  seen  in  the  air  drove  two  of  ours  to  earth  and 
regained  the  mastery.  They  did  not,  however,  resort  to 
bombing,  satisfying  themselves  with  reporting  conditions  to 
their  own  artillery.  Our  wagon  train  had  a  most  uncom- 
fortable half  hour  as  it  passed  along  the  road  between  Beney 
and  St.  Benoit.  Shell  after  shell  came  hissing  towards 
them,  but  luckily  the  German  guns  were  firing  just  a  trifle 
short.  If  the  shells  had  carried  another  fifty  yards  the  train 
would  have  been  wiped  out;  but  the  drivers  sat  steady  on 
their  boxes  and  kept  the  mules  going  at  even  pace  until  they 
reached  their  destination. 

Pannes  had  still  a  number  of  civilians,  about  thirty  in 
all,  and  all  of  them  very  old  people  or  children,  the  able- 
bodied  ones  having  been  carried  off  by  the  enemy.  Those 
remaining  received  their  deliverers  with  open  arms,  and  all 
the  old  ladies  insisted  on  kissing  Lieutenant  Rerat,  very 
handsome  and  blushing  in  his  neat  uniform  of  horizon-hleu. 
They  had  been  rationed  by  the  Germans  during  the  four 
years  of  occupation;  none  too  well,  but  with  enough  to 
keep  them  fit  to  work.  They  gave  us  all  they  had,  and  we 
had  an  opportunity  to  get  an  idea  of  what  German  soldiers 
got  to  eat.  The  bread  was  an  indigestible  looking  mass  on 
the  order  of  pumpernickel.  The  coffee  was  far  from  being 
Mocha,  but  sugar  seemed  to  be  more  plentiful  than  in 
France.  The  Fall  vegetables  were  not  yet  ripe  but  the  fields 
had  been  sown  with  potatoes,  turnips,  kohlrabi,  and  acres 
and  acres  of  cabbage.  The  French  authorities  gave  orders 
to  have  all  civilians  evacuated  to  the  rear  whether  they 
wanted  it  or  not;  and  Lieutenant  Rerat  and  I  assembled 
them  with  their  pitiful  little  collection  of  belongings  aoi| 
Bent  them  back  in  ambulances. 


245 


a46  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

It  was  a  great  place  for  souvenir  hunting — pistols,  spurs, 
German  post-cards,  musical  instruments — all  sorts  of  loot. 
I  saw  Bill  Schmidt  with  a  long  steel  Uhlan's  lance;  while 
Tom  Donohue,  true  to  his  instincts,  came  by  with  no  less 
than  four  violins.  Most  of  the  men,  of  a  more  normal  type 
of  soldier,  passed  up  the  musical  instruments  in  search  for 
German  sausages  and  beer.  There  were  also  vast  amounts 
of  military  stores  and  ammunition,  as  well  as  the  field  pieces 
and  machine  guns  which  had  been  captured  in  the  battle. 

Major  Lawrence  thinks  that  five  or  six  of  his  men  de- 
serve a  citation,  for  going  out  voluntarily  under  the  leader- 
ship of  Sergeant  Eichorn  and  James  Mason  to  rescue  a 
wounded  officer  in  another  regiment.  The  Sanitary  Detach- 
ment is  very  happy  because  they  not  only  have  the  Major 
back  but  also  three  popular  sergeants — Grady,  Hayes  and 
Maher  who  for  a  time  have  been  attached  to  the  Ohios. 

Lieutenant  Clifford  is  enthusiastic  about  the  courage  of 
Sergeant  Gilgar  of  Company  B  who  went  ahead  witli  five 
men  against  an  enemy  position,  manoeuvred  his  party  into  a 
position  where  he  threatened  the  German  rear,  and  then, 
by  putting  on  a  bold  front  as  if  he  had  a  whole  company 
behind  him,  frightened  them  into  surrender  and  returned 
to  our  line  with  thirty-two  prisoners.  Sergeant  John 
Mohr's  life  was  saved  by  the  quickness  of  John  Moran  who 
was  just  in  time  in  killing  a  German  who  was  trying  to  get 
our  veteran  Sergeant. 

Chaplain  Holmes,  who  had  walked  into  fight  his  very  first 
day  at  the  front,  was  anxious  to  do  his  full  share,  and 
volunteered  while  we  were  at  Pannes  to  scour  the  battle- 
field in  order  to  bury  the  dead.  Lieutenant  Flynn  and  a  de- 
tachment from  Headquarters  Company  went  with  him  and 
carried  out  this  mournful  task.  At  the  time  we  had  no  way 
of  knowing  for  certain  just  how  many  of  ours  had  fallen 
on  the  field.  The  battlefield  was  in  our  hands  from  the 
first  and  anyone  who  had  a  spark  of  life  in  him  was  carried 
quickly  to  the  rear.  Later  estimates  placed  the  number  of 
our  dead,  up  to  the  present,  as  about  thirty-five.    The  high- 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  247 

est  in  rank  was  Thomas  J.  Ciirtin,  ist  Sergeant  of  Company 
D,  who  was  hit  by  a  rifle  bullet  advancing  at  the  head  of  a 
platoon.  In  Company  A  we  lost  another  good  Sergeant, 
William  Walsh;  and  in  the  same  company  Corporals  Pat- 
rick Doolan,  Patrick  McDermott  and  John  McDonald  with 
Privates  Joseph  Biskey  and  William  Williams ;  in  Company 
B,  Mechanic  Henry  Schumacher  and  Private  N.  W.  Black- 
man,  Douglas  Cummings,  Humberto  Florio,  William  Poole 
and  Dominic  Zollo ;  in  Company  C,  Privates  John  Nanarto, 
Felix  Curtis,  Manfred  Emanuelson,  Thomas  F.  Petty  and 
Augustus  Altheide;  in  Company  D,  Corporal  Philip  Greeler, 
Privates  Ferdinand  Urban,  Ernest  E.  Martin,  Horace  Mu- 
sumeck,  William  Mitchell,  Walter  Long,  Clarence  Gabbert, 
with  Corporal  James  MacDonald  and  Daniel  Harkins  (died 
of  wounds)  ;  Company  E  lost  Corporals  Michael  Rooney 
and  William  Bechtold;  Company  F,  James  Wynne,  Rex 
"Strait,  Eugene  Rogers,  Angelo  Kanevas  and  Jesse  Scott; 
Company  G,  William  Perkins;  Company  H,  James  Spiker 
and  Joseph  Deese;  Company  K,  Privates  Joseph  Dearmon, 
G.  C.  Kenly  and  W.  H.  Leach,  Company  M;  O.  O.  Dykes 
and  Edward  Kiethley,  while  the  Machine  Gun  Company 
suffered  the  loss  of  John  F.  MacMillan,  Edward  Hantschke 
and  Charles  Brown.     Lieutenant  Boag  was  wounded. 

The  Chateau  St.  Benoit  is  a  fine  roomy  building — a  per- 
fect palace  of  dreams  after  the  outlandish  places  that  had 
constituted  our  abodes.  But  every  body  in  it  has  an  uneasy 
feeling  that  it  makes  a  splendid  target  for  enemy  artillery. 
Charles  Carman  said  to  me  :  "Any  gunner  that  couldn't  hit 
this  building  at  night  with  his  eyes  shut  ought  to  be  sent 
back  to  whatever  the  Heinies  call  their  S.  O.  S."  They 
have  missed  it  however,  and  more  than  a  few  times;  but 
perhaps  that  is  because  they  have  still  hopes  of  occupying 
it.  Three  big  150's  came  over  last  night  and  just  missed 
knocking  off  the  comer  of  the  building  where  General  Mac- 
Arthur  was  sleeping.  They  landed  in  the  stable  and  killed 
some  of  our  horses. 

We  are  in  for  a  considerable  amount  of  shelling  period- 


248  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ically.  A  high  trajectory  shell,  like  our  American  rattle-- 
snake,  has  at  least  the  rudimentary  instincts  of  a  gentlemen. 
It  gives  fair  warning  before  it  strikes,  and  a  man  can  make 
an  attempt  to  dodge  it;  but  the  Austrian  88's  are  mean  all 
the  way  through.  It  sounds  Irish  to  say  that  you  hear  it 
coming  after  it  explodes,  but  that  is  literally  true  if  it  falls 
short  of  you. 

The  whole  sector  has  been  pinched  ofif  by  the  operation 
and  we  are  now  in  touch  with  the  French  on  our  left,  the 
1st  Division  being  crowded  out  by  the  operation,  and  the 
89th  Division  still  occupying  the  postions  to  our  right.  We 
are  faced  now  in  the  general  direction  of  Metz,  and  the 
Germans  occupy  the  Hindenburg  line  as  their  line  of  de- 
fense. Our  main  business  has  been  to  organize  our  newly 
acquired  positions  and  to  throw  out  frequent  patrols  to  test 
out  the  enemy. 

Colonel  Donovan  established  his  battalion  headquarters 
in  the  Forester's  House  on  the  road  to  Haumont  which  was 
the  nearest  village  held  by  the  enemy.  Here  Sergeant  Moore 
of  B  Company  brought  him  a  German  prisoner  whom  he 
had  just  captured.  On  interrogation  he  said  that  he  was  a 
sentinel  of  a  machine  gun  cossack  post  and  that  in  the  post 
there  was  an  officer  and  eight  men  including  one  non-com. 
All  of  these  he  thought  would  be  willing  to  surrender  ex- 
cept the  officer  and  perhaps  the  N.  C.  O.  Colonel  Donovan 
suggested  that  a  rope  be  tied  to  the  prisoner  and  that  he 
be  compelled  to  guide  a  patrol  to  the  outpost,  but  the  Ger- 
man protested  that  it  was  entirely  unnecessary,  as  he  was 
willing  to  betray  his  comrades.  A  patrol  was  sent  out  which 
captured  the  outpost  and  killed  the  officer,  who,  as  predicted, 
put  up  the  only  resistance  encountered.  Our  patrol  was  de- 
lighted at  making  the  capture,  but  if  a  chance  shot  had 
ended  the  career  of  the  man  w^ho  had  betrayed  his  own 
officer,  no  one  amongst  ours  would  have  shed  any  tears. 

Patrols  from  the  ist  and  2nd  battalions  were  sent  out 
frequently  both  by  day  and  by  night  until  September  17th. 
Some  prisoners  were  captured,  and  we  had  our  own  losses. 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  249 

In  the  first  battalion  a  patrol  of  Company  F  came  back  with- 
out Bernard  Cafferty  and  Lawrence  Whalen  who  put  for 
shelter  with  the  rest,  under  withering  German  fire,  and 
are  probably  killed. 

I  have  picked  up  a  couple  of  stories  which  relieve  a  little 
this  sombre  side  of  war.  Lieutenant  Ogle  took  out  a  patrol 
one  dark  night  and  found  in  his  party  one  soldier  without 
a  rifle,  for  which  he  rebuked  him  in  a  savage  whisper. 
Later  on  he  discovered  that  it  was  Father  Carpentier  who 
had  accompanied  the  patrol — he  says  to  render  spiritual 
first  aid  if  anyone  was  wounded.  "Yes,"  I  said,  "thit's 
what  the  priest  told  the  bishop:  that  he  went  to  the  hor.e 
races  so  as  to  be  handy  if  one  of  the  jockeys  were  thro-.v-n." 

Allen  likes  to  tell  stories  on  Donovan,  for  whom  he  has 
great  admiration.  One  afternoon  he  came  in  from  patrol 
very  hungry  after  being  away  since  early  morning,  and  he 
dropped  into  Captain  Buck's  shack  near  Hassavant  Farm, 
which  was  also  occupied  by  Colonel  Donovan.  "Captain 
Buck's  orderly  promised  me  a  roast  beef  sandwich  and  left 
the  room  to  prepare  it.  I  repeat  I  was  very  hungry  and 
was  anticipating  with  great  pleasure  the  coming  roast  beef 
sandwich.  In  a  few  minutes  the  orderly  returned  with  the 
food.  It  was  a  large  sandwich  with  a  luscious  rare  slice 
of  roast  beef  protruding  from  the  slices  of  bread,  and  wnth 
it  the  orderly  brought  a  cup  of  coffee  which  he  placed  with 
the  sandwich  on  the  table.  Precisely  at  this  moment  a  sol- 
dier entered  with  two  prisoners ;  one  a  small  Roumanian 
about  sixteen  years  of  age,  and  the  other  a  tall,  gaunt,  dirty 
looking  soldier,  both  members  of  a  labor  battalion.  They 
had  been  lost  in  the  retreat  and  had  wandered  several  days 
in  the  woods,  until  encountering  one  of  our  patrols  they 
had  surrendered.  Donovan  grabs  the  sandwich  with  one 
hand  and  the  cup  of  coffee  with  the  other.  The  small  boy 
got  the  sandwich  and  the  old  man  the  cup  of  coffee.  I 
immediately  protested  'Colonel,'  I  said,  'it  is  against  regu- 
lations to  feed  prisoners  before  they  have  been  questioned 
at  Divison.     You  should  not  feed  these  men.'     'Allen,'  he 


250  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

said,  'you  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  yourself.  This  poor 
little  boy  has  been  wandering  around  in  the  woods  for  two 
days  with  nothing  to  eat'  'Besides,'  I  said,  'that  was  my 
sandwich.'  'And  you,'  he  continued,  'a  great  big  healthy 
man,  would  take  his  meal  away  from  him.'  " 


LA  MARCHE 

September  26th 
On  September  17th  our  regiment  was  relieved  by  the  Ala- 
bamas  and  the  men  were  encamped  altogether  in  the  town 
of  La  Marche,  which  consists  of  one  large  ferme  with  a  few 
extra  stone  buildings  and  a  number  of  wooden  shacks  which 
were  constructed  by  the  Germans.  In  the  big  farm  house 
we  are  a  happy  party.  Colonel  Mitchell  likes  to  have  his 
officers  around  him  and  they  share  his  feelings  to  the  full. 
We  have  plenty  of  provisions,  a  good  many  of  them  Ger- 
man, and  Staff  and  Field  Officers  are  messing  together. 
At  table  are  Colonel  Mitchell,  Lieutenant  Colonel  Donovan, 
Majors  Reilley,  xA.nderson,  Kelly  and  Lawrence,  Captain 
Meaney,  Adjutant,  Captain  ]\Ierle-Smith,  Operations  Offi- 
cer, Lieutenant  Rerat,  Lieutenant  Spencer  and  myself.  If 
my  fancy  leads  me  to  the  open  air  I  can  walk  down  the 
road  to  Pannes  where  Captain  IMangan  with  Kinney  and 
Frank  Smith  are  working  away  with  their  doughty  mule- 
skinners,  unless  perchance  the  German  shells  chase  them 
underground ;  or  across  the  open  field  to  the  woods  where 
our  men  are  leading  a  lazy  though  muddy  existence. 

Various  incidents,  amusing  or  tragical  as  is  the  way  of 
war,  broke  the  comparative  monotony  of  these  ten  days. 
There  was  a  captive  obser\'ation  balloon  just  outside  the 
village  which  evidently  must  have  had  a  good  view  of  the 
enemy  because  they  were  most  anxious  to  get  it  down.  No 
aeroplane  succeeded  in  setting  fire  to  it,  so  the  Germans  got 
after  it  with  long  range  guns.  One  afternoon  the  fire  got 
so  hot  that  the  chauffeur  of  the  truck  to  which  it  was  at- 
tached started  dow^n  the  road  to  get  out  of  range  with  the 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  251 

big  sausage  still  floating  in  the  air  at  the  end  of  its  cable, 
the  Germans  increasing  their  range  as  their  target  moved. 
Sergeant  Daly,  the  mess  sergeant  of  the  Machine  Gun  Com- 
pany, was  peacefully  crossing  the  field  on  a  lazy  going  mule 
unaware  of  what  it  was  all  about,  when  a  German  shell 
aimed  at  the  aeroplane  down  the  road  passed  with  the  speed 
and  noise  of  a  freight  train  about  twenty  feet  above  his 
head.  The  mule  gave  one  leap  forward,  and  Daly  was  not 
trying  to  stop  him ;  and  two  thousand  soldiers  who  had 
been  watching  the  flight  of  the  balloon  burst  into  a  tre- 
mendous laugh. 

On  the  night  of  September  23rd,  a  large  calibre  German 
shell  made  a  direct  hit  right  into  a  shelter  pit  in  the  woods 
where  five  of  the  best  men  in  our  machine  gun  company 
were  lying  asleep ;  Sergeant  Frank  Gardella,  who  had  won 
the  D.  S.  C..  Sergeant  Harry  P.  Bruhn  and  Sergeant  J.  F. 
Flint,  with  Privates  H.  McCallum  and  William  Drake,  who 
was  one  of  three  brothers  in  the  company.  All  five  were 
blown  out  of  the  hole  by  the  concussion  as  high  as  the  lower 
branches  of  the  trees.  Sergeant  Flint  landed,  bruised  and 
stunned,  but  untouched  by  the  fragments.  He  gathered 
himself  together  and  found  Gardella  killed  instantly  and  the 
other  three  terribly  wounded.  He  bound  them  up,  calling 
for  help,  which  was  brought  by  Lieutenant  De  Lacour,  and 
the  three  wounded  men  were  gotten  back  to  the  hospital  by 
]\Iajor  Lawrence  and  Captain  Dudley,  but  we  had  little 
hopes  for  them,  and  have  since  heard  that  they  died  of  their 
wounds. 

Jim  Cassidy,  Frankie  Maguire  and  Jimmy  Kelly  found 
some  German  flour  which  they  brought  into  the  Head- 
quarters Kitchen.  They  are  a  guileless  looking  trio  and  I 
cannot  say  to  this  day  how  deep  a  part  they  played  in  this 
affair.  They  gave  the  flour  to  Joe  De  Nair.  Now  Joseph 
Patrick  De  Nair  has  knocked  around  this  world  for  more 
years  than  he  will  acknowledge  to  anybody — long  enough 
at  any  rate,  to  have  learned  how  to  turn  his  hand  to  any- 
thing; and  he  announced  his  intention  of  making  pancakes 


252        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

for  all  hands,  especially  me.  Everybody  was  set  to  work 
under  Joe's  direction.  Fred  Miller  and  Anderson  salvaged 
some  molasses.  Al  Ettinger  was  hustled  off  on  his  motor- 
cycle to  Pannes  to  use  my  name  with  Lieutenant  Scheffler 
for  some  oleo,  of  which  we  were  short.  Pat  Sharkey  rustled 
wood ;  Frank  Clason  built  a  fire  and  John  Brickley  flattened 
and  polished  a  tin  for  Joe's  cooking.  Bill  Hanley  and  Hum- 
phrey were  appointed  assistant  chefs.  There  was  a  group 
around  me  consisting  of  Proctor,  Holt,  Katz  and  Proud- 
foot,  and  Joe  came  over :  "All  you  ginks  have  got  to  work. 
There  are  no  guests  around  here  except  Father  Duffy." 
I  told  him  they  had  been  reading  an  article  in  the  "Daily 
Mail"  on  the  Irish  question  and  were  asking  me  about  it. 
That  saved  them,  for  Ireland  counted  more  with  Joe  than 
even  the  success  of  his  pancakes. 

The  bustling  preliminaries  were  finally  completed  and  Joe 
proceeded  to  make  his  batter.  He  poured  it  on  the  tin  and 
waited,  turning-spoon  in  hand  until,  like  St.  Lawrence,  it 
should  be  done  on  one  side.  Then  with  the  air  of  an 
artist,  he  turned  his  first  pancake  with  a  flourish.  It 
landed  on  the  pan  with  a  bang  like  a  shell  striking  an 

elephant  hut.    "What  the ,"  muttered  Joe,  as  he  picked 

up  the  results  of  his  labor.  "Well  I'll  be !"    "What's 

the  matter  Joe?"  I  asked,  conscious  that  something  was 
going  wrong  and  that  my  presence  deprived  him  of  the 
normal  outlet  for  his  feelings.  "What's  the  matter. 
Where's  those  dummed  kids?"  "Well,  what  is  the  matter?" 
"What's  the  matter.  What's  the  matter?  The  stuff  they 
gave  me  for  flour  is  plaster  of  Paris.     That's  what's  the 

matter.    Where  the Oh  for  Heaven's  sake,  Father,  go 

inside  until  I  can  let  myself  spill." 


BOIS  DE  MONTFAUCON 

October  loth. 

On  September  27th,  we  relieved  the  84th  Brigade  in  the 
line,  taking  over  the  positions  of  the  lowas  in  sul>sector 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  253 

Marimbois,  Major  Anderson's  battalion  being  in  the  for- 
ward position.  It  was  the  usual  business  of  patrolling  until 
September  30th,  when  our  Division  was  relieved  in  the 
Sector  by  the  89th,  and  withdrew  to  the  Bois  de  la  Belle 
Ozicre,  a  little  south  of  where  we  were  before.  Next 
morning,  October  ist,  we  marched  about  10  kilometers  to 
our  embussing  point,  where  we  found  a  tremendously  large 
fleet  of  camions  driven  by  the  little  Chinks  whom  our  fel- 
lows now  call  the  undertakers,  because  they  associate  them 
with  deaths  and  burials. 

Here  I  met  an  old  friend,  George  Boothby  of  the  New 
York  World,  who  had  finally  succeeded  in  getting  over  to 
the  war  by  entering  the  publicity  department  of  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  The  uniform  with  the  red  triangle  somehow  caused 
a  smile  when  seen  on  George,  but  he  was  the  first  to  grin. 

We  got  started  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  and 
spent  the  whole  of  a  freezing  night  on  the  journey,  most 
of  it  lying  along  the  Voie  Sacree  or  Sacred  Way,  over  which 
the  supplies  and  reinforcements  had  been  sent  which  saved 
Verdun.  Our  destination  was  Mondrecourt  where  we  re- 
mained until  October  4th,  when  we  marched  by  daylight 
to  Jubecourt.  On  October  5th  we  moved  north  again,  an 
interminable  march,  with  all  the  infantry  in  the  Division 
going  up  on  one  mean  road,  to  the  woods  of  Montfaucon. 

I  had  it  easy  myself  because  Colonel  Mitchell  with  his 
usual  fine  way  of  doing  a  courtesy,  asked  me  as  a  favor  to 
get  the  automobile  and  some  personal  baggage  through,  as 
he  was  going  mounted.  So  Brown  and  Dayton  and  myself 
got  there  by  better  roads  ahead  of  the  rest  and  found  our- 
selves at  the  headquarters  of  the  32nd  Division,  where  Col- 
onel Callan  and  Father  Dunnigan  gave  me  a  hospitable  wel- 
come. When  I  heard  "32nd  Division,"  my  first  thought 
was  "Now  I  can  see  McCoy  again,"  as  he  had  been  made 
General  of  the  63rd  Brigade,  but  it  was  two  days  before 
I  descried  his  familiar  figure  crowned  with  the  French 
casque,  a  parting  gift  from  the  Comte  de  Chambrun  when 


254  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

he  left  Chaumont.  It  was  a  memorable  meeting,  but  all  too 
short,  for  he  had  his  brigade  in  line  to  look  after. 

The  woods  of  Montfaucon,  which  lie  in  the  area  of  the 
great  battles  for  Verdun,  fills  exactly  a  civilian's  idea  of 
what  No  Man's  Land  should  look  like.  In  its  day  it  was  a 
fine  forest  of  thick-girthed  trees,  but  they  had  been  battered 
by  long  cannonading  until  not  one  of  them  was  as  nature 
had  fashioned  it.  Big  branches  had  been  torn  off  and  heavy 
trees  knocked  to  the  ground.  The  shell-holes  lay  close  to- 
gether like  pock  marks  on  a  badly  pitted  face.  It  was 
almost  impossible  to  find  a  level  spot  to  pitch  a  small  pup 
tent.  Owing  to  recent  rains  and  the  long  occupation  of  the 
woods  by  troops,  both  our  own  and  the  enemy's,  the  place 
was  in  a  bad  state  of  sanitation.  The  roads,  too,  were  bad 
and  difficult  for  all  kinds  of  traffic,  particularly  motor 
traffic.  There  were  very  few  dugouts,  all  of  them  small 
and  most  of  them  dirty  and  wet.  Division  headquarters 
established  itself  in  trucks  as  being  better  than  any  existing 
accommodations.  General  Lenihan  kindly  took  me  in  and 
gave  me  a  share  in  the  dugout  occupied  by  himself  and 
Lieutenant  Grose.  Together  we  made  a  happy  week  of  it 
in  spite  of  bad  conditions. 

While  here  we  received  word  that  the  Germans  had  asked 
for  an  armistice.  The  older  and  wiser  heads  amongst  us 
felt  quite  certain  that  they  would  not  get  what  they  had 
asked  for  until  they  were  reduced  to  a  more  humble  spirit ; 
but  we  were  worried  about  the  effect  it  might  have  on  the 
morale  of  the  troops,  because  it  would  be  particularly  hard 
for  soldiers  to  face  another  big  battle  if  they  had  made  up 
their  minds  that  the  fighting  was  over.  So  Colonels  Mit- 
chell and  Donovan  asked  me  to  go  amongst  the  men,  sound 
them  out,  and  set  them  right  if  necessary.  It  was  an  easy 
commission.  One  of  the  first  men  I  spoke  to  was  Vincent 
Mulholland,  one  of  my  parish  recruits  and  now  ist  Ser- 
geant of  Company  B.  In  answer  to  my  first  question  he 
replied  "Of  course  I  would  like  to  see  the  war  over,  but 
not  while  the  old  regiment  is  back  here  in  army  corps  re- 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  256 

serve.  I  want  to  see  this  war  end  with  the  69th  right  out 
in  the  front  Hne,  going  strong."  Not  everybody  was  as 
emphatic  as  that,  but  I  was  able  to  make  a  very  assured 
report  that  the  old  timers  at  least  would  go  into  a  battle 
with  the  same  spirit  they  had  at  Champagne  or  the  Ourcq 
or  St.  Mihiel. 

Jack  Mangan  has  left  us  to  take  charge  of  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Headquarters  Battalion  of  the  new  Second 
Army  at  Toul.  Colonel  Haskell,  who  is  assistant  Chief 
of  Staff  in  the  2nd  Army,  visited  us  during  our  journey 
from  Baccarat  to  Chalons  and  got  a  great  reception  from 
the  old-timers.  Even  then,  he  had  his  eye  on  Mangan  and 
wanted  him  to  come  with  him.  There  is  nothing  that  so 
much  impresses  me  as  a  proof  of  the  absolute  sense  of  duty 
and  loyalty  of  our  old  officers  to  this  regiment  as  the  at- 
titude which  they  invariably  take  concerning  invitations  to 
improve  their  rank  and  fortunes  by  going  elsewhere.  The 
younger  officers  have  no  choice  in  the  matter.  We  have 
been  sending  home  as  instructors  a  few  of  them  each  month, 
and  have  lost  a  large  number  of  very  efficient  lieutenants. 
But  those  who  are  free  to  exercise  any  choice  invariably 
view  the  opportunity  as  a  question  of  conscience  and  put 
the  matter  up  to  me.  Major  McKenna  (then  Captain)  did 
this  in  the  Luneville  area  when  he  had  a  chance  for  the  office 
of  Judge  Advocate.  In  the  same  spirit  Mangan  said  he 
would  not  quit  to  join  Haskell  unless  I  decided  that  the 
Regiment  could  spare  him.  My  decision  was  that  he  could 
not  go  until  Kinney  was  made  a  Captain,  as  I  knew  that 
the  latter  could  fill  admirably  the  extremely  important  post 
of  R.  S.  O. 

The  hardest  battle  of  all  has  been  to  keep  Donovan  with 
the  Regiment,  but  he  has  made  that  fight  himself,  as  there 
is  no  place  else  in  the  world  that  would  tempt  him  for  a 
minute.  He  has  dodged  orders  to  send  him  to  Staff  Col- 
lege (which  would  inevitably  mean  a  transfer  after  he  was 
finished),  orders  to  go  on  special  duties,  invitations  or  sug- 
gestions to  receive  promotion  by  transfer.     General  Meno- 


256  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

her  and  Colonel  MacArthur  have  been  always  alert  to  take 
up  the  battle  to  retain  him  with  us.  He  and  I  tramped  the 
muddy  road  tonight  while  he  disburdened  himself  of  a  new 
worry.  The  Provost  Marshal  General  wants  an  assistant 
who  is  at  once  a  good  lawyer  and  a  keen  soldier,  with  a 
knowledge  of  French,  and  he  has  demanded  that  Donovan 
be  sent  to  him.  Colonel  Hughes,  our  new  Chief  of  Staff, 
has  done  his  best  to  block  it ;  but  he  has  been  informed  by 
General  Headquarters  that  the  authorities  of  the  42nd  Divi- 
sion have  managed  to  evade  the  wishes  of  military  authority 
in  Colonel  Donovan's  case  six  times  already  and  that  this 
order  is  peremptory.  All  that  General  Menoher  has  been 
able  to  do  is  to  hold  him  until  the  next  battle  is  over. 
Donovan  is  disgusted  and  sore  for  the  first  time  in  my 
knowledge  of  him. 

Every  now  and  then  there  is  some  desultory  shelling  in 
the  woods,  but  the  only  sight  of  warfare  that  we  get  is  in 
the  sky.  Our  balloons  must  be  well  placed,  because  the 
German  flyers  have  been  very  persistent  in  their  attempts  to 
bring  them  down,  and  their  efforts  are  too  often  successful. 
Today,  we  saw  a  German  aviator  perform  a  feat  which  was 
one  of  the  most  daring  things  that  any  of  us  has  seen  during 
the  war.  The  rapid  and  sustained  discharge  of  anti-aircraft 
guns  (which  have  their  own  unmistakable  note)  brought 
everybody  to  the  edge  of  the  woods.  Guided  by  puffs  of 
white  or  black  smoke  which  dotted  the  sky  above  us,  we 
were  able  to  detect  a  single  German  plane  headed  unswerv- 
ingly towards  us,  and  not  flying  very  high  either.  Our  own 
planes  were  swooping  towards  him,  but  he  came  right  on, 
without  any  change  of  altitude  or  direction.  He  passed 
over  our  line  of  balloons,  and  then  turned  abruptly  and 
dived  towards  the  one  nearest  us,  throwing  his  dart  and 
passing  on.  The  flames  did  not  show  at  once,  and  evidently 
noticing  this,  he  checked  his  flight  and  started  back  to  finish 
the  job.  Just  then  the  flames  burst  up,  and  he  wheeled  in 
air  to  make  his  escape.  Soldiers  in  combat  divisions  are 
the  best  sports  in  the  world.    There  must  have  been  twenty 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  257 

thousand  of  them  watching  this  daring  exploit  of  an  enemy, 
and  I  feel  certain  there  was  not  a  man  amongst  them  who 
did  not  murmur  "I  hope  to  God  the  beggar  gets  away." 
There  were  a  dozen  of  our  planes  after  him  by  this  time 
and  before  he  reached  his  own  lines  they  forced  him  to 
earth,  landing  in  safety. 

As  I  make  my  rounds  amongst  the  men  scattered  through 
the  woods,  I  find  many  whose  names  I  do  not  know.  In 
the  original  regiment  I  knew  practically  everyone  by  his 
name;  but  through  a  variety  of  causes  half  of  those  men 
are  no  longer  with  us  and  their  places  have  been  taken  by 
others,  with  whom,  on  account  of  our  constant  motion,  it 
has  been  impossible  to  get  acquainted. 

The  wearing  down  of  a  regiment,  even  outside  of  battle, 
is  constant.  Brigade  and  Division  Headquarters  select 
those  that  they  want  for  their  own  work,  bright  sergeants 
are  sent  off  to  Army  Candidate's  School  to  be  trained  for 
officers,  and  are  invariably  sent  to  other  divisions.  There 
is  a  constant  trickle  of  sick  men  to  hospitals,  from  which 
many  never  return  to  us;  and  most  of  all,  there  are  the 
tremendous  losses  that  a  regiment,  particularly  an  infantry 
regiment,  has  to  pay  in  battle.  Our  total  losses  in  action 
of  killed,  wounded  and  missing  up  to  the  present  are  about 
2,600  men.  Taking  all  causes  into .  consideration  nearly 
3,000  of  our  original  men  have  been  dropped,  at  least 
temporarily,  from  our  rolls  since  we  came  to  France.  If 
none  of  them  had  returned  there  would  be  now  only  600 
of  them  left,  but  as  a  matter  of  fact,  nearly  all  of  our 
wounded  who  have  graduated  into  the  "Fit  for  Service" 
class  have  insisted  on  their  right  to  come  back.  So  about 
half  of  our  present  total  of  2,983  men  are  of  the  original 
outfit.  It  is  easy  to  pick  them  out  by  glancing  down  a  com- 
pany roster,  because  our  serial  numbers  are  all  under 
100,000  while  the  new  men  have  numbers  running  into  the 
millions. 

I  do  not  find  that  the  spirit  of  the  regiment  as  a  whole 
has  changed  on  account  of  these  fresh  accessions.    A  regi- 


258  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ment  is  largely  what  its  officers  and  non-coms,  make  it. 
Practically  all  of  our  present  officers  have  been  through  all 
the  fights  with  us  and  have  gained  their  present  ranks  in 
battle,  and  the  non-coms  are  naturally  men  of  the  original 
regiment  who  have  earned  their  stripes  by  good  soldiering 
in  camp  and  in  the  field.  These  men  are  the  custodians  of 
regimental  pride  and  regimental  tradition,  and  their  spirit  is 
communicated  to  or  imposed  upon  the  new-comers. 

Most  of  these  newcomers  moreover,  have  proved  them- 
selves excellent  material.  The  first  few  that  were  sent  us 
in  Luneville  were  poor  foreigners  from  the  coal  mining 
districts  who  could  scarcely  speak  English,  but  in  Baccarat 
we  got  three  hundred  men  from  Camp  Devens  who  were 
a  fine  lot  of  fellows,  and,  now  that  they  have  gone  through 
the  big  fights  with  us,  are  not  to  be  distinguished  in  any  way 
from  the  original  volunteers.  We  received  a  lot  of  first 
class  men  also  from  the  Kentucky-Tennessee  and  the  Texas- 
Oklahoma  National  Guard  organizations,  among  the  latter 
being  a  number  of  Indians.  All  of  these  replacements  who 
have  gone  through  battles  with  us  are  now  absolutely  part 
and  parcel  of  the  165th  Infantry  and  have  created  bonds  of 
battle  friendship  with  our  Irish  and  New  York  lads  which 
are  closer  than  any  family  tie  can  be. 

In  any  extended  campaign  it  is  a  very  rare  soldier  who 
does  not  get  the  experience  of  being  in  a  hospital  at  least 
once;  although  we  could  not  possibly  spend  as  much  time 
in  them  as  rumors  that  they  get  at  home  make  our  people 
think  we  do.  I  myself  have  been  killed  or  wounded  at  least 
a  dozen  times.  The  other  day  Lester  Sullivan,  who  comes 
from  my  parish,  looked  up  from  a  letter  he  was  reading 
and  said  to  me  "Father  DufiTy  if  you  had  ten  thousand  dol- 
lars insurance  for  every  time  you  were  killed  you'd  never 
need  to  work  for  the  rest  of  your  life." 

After  battles  of  course  they  are  being  sent  back  by  hun- 
dreds and  thousands.  Jim  Healey  was  telling  me  a  yarn 
which  hits  off  a  type  of  humor  that  is  characteristic  of  the 
American.     A  hospital  train  pulled  into  a  French  station 


THE  ST.  MIHIEL  OFFENSIVE  259 

with  its  doors  and  windows  and  platforms  crowded  with 
"walking  cases''  and  stopped  on  a  track  alongside  a  similar 
train  with  the  same  kind  of  a  crowd  looking  out.  "Where 
are  youse  guys  from?"  shouted  one  of  the  soldiers.  "Fohty- 
second  Division.  Whey  you  all  from?"  "De  rest  of  de 
Forty-second  Division"  came  the  reply — everybody  shout- 
ing with  laughter  at  this  bit  of  delicate  and  tender  humor. 

Hospitals  thus  become,  like  London  coffee  houses  in  the 
i8th  century,  the  clearing  houses  of  news  and  the  creators 
of  public  opinion.  They  are  the  only  place  where  soldiers 
meet  men  who  do  not  belong  to  their  own  Division;  in 
fact,  soldiers  seldom  meet  anybody  outside  their  own  regi- 
ment and  many  a  man's  friendships  do  not  extend  beyond 
his  company.  But  in  hospitals,  and  more  particularly  in 
convalescent  and  casual  camps,  where  they  are  able  to  move 
around,  they  come  into  touch  with  the  whole  American 
Expeditionary  Force.  Battles  are  discussed,  organizations 
criticized,  reputations  of  officers  made  or  unmade. 

It  is  in  these  places  also  that  the  sentiment  for  one's  own 
Division  grows  strong.  Regiments  may  fight  with  each 
other  wathin  the  Division,  but  as  opposed  to  other  Divisions 
they  present  a  united  front.  The  regulars  and  marines  in 
the  famous  2nd  Division  have  their  own  little  differences, 
but  they  do  not  show  when  they  come  up  against  men  from 
the  1st,  26th,  or  42nd.  Our  own  New  Yorks  and  Alabamas 
started  off  with  a  small  family  row  at  Camp  Mills  which 
has  been  utterly  forgotten,  partly  because  they  have  always 
been  fighting  side  by  side  on  every  battle  front  and  have 
grown  to  admire  each  other,  but  even  more,  I  suspect,  be- 
cause they  have  formed  ties  of  blood  brotherhood  back  in 
convalescent  camps  by  getting  together  to  wallop  the  ma- 
rines. 

Every  soldier  in  a  combat  division  thinks  that  his  own 
division  is  doing  all  the  work  and  getting  none  of  the  credit. 
But  then  I  never  met  a  soldier  yet  who  does  not  say  "It's  a 
funny  thing  that  my  platoon  always  happens  to  get  the  dirty 
details."    This  much  is  true — that  there  is  a  number  of  di- 


260  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

visions  which  can  be  counted  on  the  fingers  of  one's  two 
hands  that  have  been  kept  right  up  against  the  buzz-saw 
ever  since  last  June,  Of  course  we  are  not  proper  judges  of 
tlie  policies  or  exigencies  of  the  high  command,  but  every- 
body who  is  in  touch  with  men  knows  that  they  would  be 
better  fitted  for  their  work  in  the  line  if  they  could  be  taken 
out  for  a  few  weeks  rest.  The  discomforts  and  anxieties 
of  life  at  the  front  are  cumulative,  and  men  gradually  get 
fretful  and  grouchy  as  well  as  run  down  physically.  It 
is  surprising  to  see  how  quickly  they  recuperate  in  a  rest 
area.  \Yt  ought  to  be  taken  out  of  these  woods  to  some 
more  civilized  place  where  the  men  can  go  on  leave  or  hang 
around  billets,  writing  letters,  reading,  cleaning  equipment 
and  forgetting  all  about  battle  and  bloodshed,  and  getting 
freshened  up  mentally  and  physically.  As  one  fellow  said 
to  me  "I'd  like  to  get  somewhere  where  I  could  hear  a  hen 
cackle  and  see  a  kid  run  across  the  road.  I'd  like  to  be 
where  I  could  get  a  change  from  corn-willie  by  going  off 
some  evening  with  a  few  of  the  fellows  and  getting  some 
old  French  lady  to  cook  us  up  some  oofs  (oeiifs)  and 
pommcs  f rites,  with  a  bottle  of  red  ink  to  wash  it  down." 

We  knew  that  there  had  been  going  on  for  three  weeks 
flow  a  battle  for  the  possession  of  all  this  Argonne  District, 
in  which  many  American  Divisions  were  taking  part,  and 
amongst  them  our  sturdy  fellow  citizens  from  New  York, 
the  77th  Division,  who  had  succeeded  us  at  Baccarat  and 
in  the  Chateau  Thierry  Sector.  We  expected  that  we  would 
be  called  upon  to  relieve  the  32nd  Division  which  was  fight- 
ing just  in  front  of  us.  But  today,  October  loth,  came 
orders  to  proceed  to  the  west  along  the  river  Aire  for  the 
relief  of  the  ist  Division. 


CHAPTER  IX 
THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE 

In  the  general  operation  which  was  shared  in  by  all  the 
Allied  armies  in  France  to  turn  the  German  retreat  into  a 
rout,  the  most  difficult  and  most  important  task  was  as- 
signed to  the  Americans.  The  Belgians,  British  and  French 
could  only  exercise  a  frontal  pressure  on  the  enemy  except 
for  a  few  local  salients  which  might  be  created  here  and 
there.  But  if  the  American  army  could  smash  their  re- 
sistance on  the  southeast  end  of  the  German  lines,  and 
particularly  if  it  could  break  through  so  as  to  capture  the 
military  trunk  line  which  ran  through  Sedan  to  their  depot 
at  Metz,  large  bodies  of  Germans  farther  to  the  west  would 
be  brought  close  to  the  point  of  surrender.  Naturally,  the 
German  Commanders  knew  this  as  well  as  IMarshal  Foch 
or  General  Pershing  and  they  massed  their  defenses  at  the 
point  of  greatest  danger.  To  the  civilian  mind,  when  troops 
are  advancing  ten  or  fifteen  kilometers  a  day  and  capturing 
prisoners  and  guns,  they  are  heroes  of  tremendous  battles. 
But  soldiers  know  that  in  the  tremendous  battles  an  advance 
of  two  or  three  kilometers  is  a  big  gain,  to  be  paid  for  at  a 
great  cost  of  human  life.  We  had  an  example  of  the  first 
kind  at  Saint  Mihiel,  which  loomed  large  in  the  imagination 
of  the  folks  at  home,  but  which  to  the  soldiers  was  a  walk- 
over. The  Argonne  was  no  walkover  during  the  first  five 
weeks. 

The  nature  of  the  country  made  it  easy  to  defend,  hard 
to  capture.  It  is  a  hilly  country — and  that  always  means, 
plenty  of  woods.  The  hills,  moreover,  connect  themselves 
up  in  a  general  east  and  west  direction  and  the  advance  had 
to  be  made  by  conquering  a  series  of  heights.     When  we 

261 


262  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

went  into  the  fight  the  Hne-up  of  Divisions  nearest  to  us 
were  the  77th,  on  the  extreme  left,  going  up  through  the 
forest,  the  82nd  on  the  other  side  of  the  Aire,  the  1st,  which 
we  rcHeved,  and  on  our  right,  the  32nd.  Further  east  were 
other  divisions  extending  up  to  the  Meuse,  while  yet  other 
bodies  of  Americans  were  working  to  cross  that  river  and 
fight  their  way  up  its  eastern  bank. 

In  the  sector  on  the  east  side  of  the  Aire,  which  we  now 
took  over,  the  35th  Division  had  been  first  to  go  in.  At 
great  sacrifice  it  had  captured  successive  villages  and  ridges, 
but  had  finally  been  repulsed  on  the  last  hill  before  reaching 
Exermont  and  had  been  forced  to  fall  back.  Then  the  old 
reliables  of  the  ist  Division,  who  had  been  our  first  troops 
to  arrive  in  France  and  the  first  to  engage  with  the  enemy 
at  Cantigny,  were  called  upon  to  do  their  share.  They  did 
it,  and  more  than  their  share.  They  captured  the  ridges 
up  to  Exermont  and  Fleville  and  Sommerance,  swept  the 
Germans  of¥  the  Cote  de  Maldah  and  there  established  their 
lines  at  the  price  of  half  the  infantry  in  the  Division. 

Now  it  was  our  turn.'  If  the  others  had  a  hard  task,  ours 
was  certainly  no  easier,  because  it  was  given  to  us  to  break 
the  final  and  long  prepared  line  of  German  defenses,  called 
the  Kriemhilde  Stellung. 

We  marched  to  our  new  positions  on  October  nth,  our 
strength  at  the  time  being  53  officers  and  a  little  less  than 
3,000  men.  Regimental  headquarters  were  set  up  at  Exer- 
mont, the  Supply  Company  being  down  the  road  at  Apre- 
mont.  The  first  day  the  support  and  reserve  battalions  were 
in  a  wide  gully  to  the  east,  called  Chaudron  Farm.  The  3rd 
battalion  effected  the  relief  on  the  front  line,  Major  Reilley 
commanding.  Lieutenant  Heller,  Adjutant,  Company  I  un- 
der Captain  Michael  J.  Walsh,  who  had  insisted  on  giving 
up  the  Headquarters  Company  and  taking  a  line  Company 
so  that  he  could  take  part  himself  in  the  fighting;  Company 
K  under  Lieutenant  Guignon ;  Company  L,  Captain  Given, 
Company  M,  Captain  Rowley.  In  support  was  the  ist  Bat- 
talion now  commanded  by  Major  Kelly,  Lieutenant  O'Con- 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFEXSIVE  263 

nor,  Adjutant,  Lieutenant  Connelly  being  Intelligence  Offi- 
cer. The  commanders  of  A,  B,  C,  and  D,  being  Lieutenant 
W.  Hutchinson,  Lieutenant  Clifford,  Captain  Bootz  and 
Captain  Buck,  Second  Battalion  under  Major  Anderson, 
Lieutenant  Fechheimer,  Adjutant,  with  E,  F,  G  and  H 
under  Captain  Conners,  Captain  Marsh,  Captain  Stout  and 
Lieutenant  Ogle. 

As  the  companies  marched  up  to  take  their  place  in  line 
I  stood  on  a  rising  ground  in  the  bleak  and  open  plain  to 
perform  my  own  duties  in  their  regard,  which  for  many  of 
them  would  be  the  last  time.  The  frequently  recurring 
rows  of  rude  crosses  which  marked  the  last  resting  places  of 
many  brave  lads  of  the  ist  Division  were  an  eloquent  sermon 
on  death ;  so  that  no  words  of  warning  from  me  were  needed 
and  I  was  able  to  do  my  holy  business  in  a  matter  of  fact 
way  which  soldiers  like  better  than  being  preached  at.  Gen- 
eral Lenihan  is  fond  of  quoting  Private  Terence  IMulvaney's 
remark  :  "What  I  like  about  the  old  church  is  that  she's  so 
remarkable  regimental  in  her  fittin's." 

In  former  days  men  massed  together  for  battle;  today 
they  scatter.  It  is  interesting  to  watch  the  deliberate  disin- 
tegration of  a  Division  as  it  approaches  the  front  line.  It 
breaks  into  brigades  and  into  regiments  for  convenience  in 
using  the  roads.  Then  the  regiments  are  broken  into  bat- 
talions, usually,  according  to  the  stock  phrase  "echeloned  in 
depth"  that  is,  one  on  the  line,  one  in  support  and  one  in  re- 
serve. The  battalion  breaks  up  into  companies  as  it  gets 
nearer  the  front;  and  the  companies,  when  they  reach  the 
point  where  they  are  likely  to  be  under  shell-fire,  separate 
into  platoons  with  considerable  distance  between  them.  In 
action  men  advance  with  generous  intervals  between. 

When  they  get  close  to  the  enemy  the  advance  is  made  by 
frequent  rushes,  about  a  fourth  of  the  men  in  a  platoon  run- 
ning forward,  taking  advantage  of  the  ground,  while  their 
comrades  keep  the  enemy's  heads  down  by  their  fire,  until  all 
of  them  can  get  close.  In  its  last  stages  the  warfare  of  these 
small  groups  is  more  like  the  Indian  fighting  in  which  the 


264  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

first  General  of  our  Republic  learned  the  profession  of  arms, 
than  anything  which  the  imagination  of  civilians  pictures 
it.  To  take  machine  gun  nests — I  am  not  speaking  of  reg- 
ularly wired  and  entrenched  positions  which  it  is  the  business 
of  artillery  to  reduce  before  the  infantry  essays  them —  it  is 
often  a  matter  of  individual  courage  and  strategy.  Some- 
times the  fire  of  a  platoon  can  reduce  the  number  of  the  gun- 
ners or  make  the  less  hardy  of  them  keep  their  heads  down 
so  that  the  pieces  cannot  be  properly  handled;  but  often  the 
resistance  is  overcome  by  a  single  sharp-shooter  firing  from 
the  elbow  of  a  tree,  or  by  some  daring  fellow  who  works  his 
way  across  hollows  which  are  barely  deep  enough  to  protect 
him  from  fire,  or  up  a  gully  or  watercourse,  until  he  is  near 
enough  to  throw  hand  grenades.   Then  it  is  all  over. 

Our  supply  company  and  band  were  stationed  at  the 
Ferme  de  I'Esperance  on  the  Aire  River.  Going  north 
along  the  river  road  as  far  as  Fleville  one  finds  a  road  going 
to  the  right  through  a  deep  defile  which  leads  to  the  village 
of  Exermont  about  a  mile  and  a  half  away.  On  the  north 
and  on  the  south  the  view  is  bounded  by  steep  hills  which 
have  been  captured  by  the  ist  Division.  To  the  north  a 
muddy  trail  winds  around  the  base  of  hill  247  leading  to  a 
wide,  rough,  partly  wooded  plain.  This  was  covered  with 
the  bodies  of  the  brave  soldiers  of  the  ist  Division,  more 
thickly  than  I  have  seen  anywhere  else  with  the  exception  of 
the  hill  where  lay  our  3rd  Battalion  north  of  the  Ourcq. 
There  were  many  German  wooden  shelters  at  the  base  of  the 
hill  to  the  right,  with  bodies  of  dead  Gemians,  many  of 
them  killed  in  hand  to  hand  conflict. 

Our  3rd  Battalion  took  over  the  front  line  on  the  Cote  de 
Maldah,  a  maze  of  woods  and  ravines.  Companies  M  and 
I  were  on  the  twin  knolls  of  the  Cote,  K  and  L  in  the 
woods  behind.  To  their  left  were  the  Ohios  at  Sommer- 
ance,  while  the  Alabamas  and  lowas  held  positions  similar 
to  our  own  on  hills  263  and  269.  Our  2nd  Battalion  was  in 
a  shrubby  woods  to  the  rear,  and  the  ist  Battalion  was  orig- 
inally held  under  protection  of  the  hill  just  ouside  of  Exer- 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  265 

mont,  in  which  town  were  the  headquarters  of  the  165th  and 
i66th  and  the  Regimental  Dressing  Stations  of  the  165th 
and  167th.  Our  artillery,  which  had  been  in  support  of  the 
32nd  Division,  rejoined  us  on  October  13th,  making  a  hard, 
forced  march  with  animals  that  had  been  reduced  in  strength 
and  numbers  by  our  continuous  warfare.  Colonel  Henry 
Reilly,  a  West  Point  graduate,  and  a  man  of  great  intelli- 
gence and  force  of  character,  was  appointed  to  direct  the 
operations  of  the  artillery  brigade,  leaving  Lieutenant  Col- 
onel Redden  to  take  charge  of  his  own  regiment,  the  149th 
Field  Artillery.  The  artillery  of  the  ist  cjivision  also  re- 
mained to  assist  in  the  sector. 

The  German  main  line  of  defense — the  Kriemhilde  Stel- 
lung,  was  about  three  kilometers  in  front  of  our  brigade  but 
less  than  two  in  front  of  the  84th  Brigade.  It  was  a  well 
prepared  and  strongely  wired  position  consisting  of  three 
lines  of  wires  and  trenches.  The  first  rows  of  wire  were 
breast  high  and  as  much  as  twenty  feet  wude,  all  bound 
together  in  small  squares  by  iron  supports  so  that  it  was 
almost  impossible  for  artillery  to  destroy  it  unless  the  whole 
ground  were  beaten  flat.  Back  of  this  were  good  trenches 
about  four  feet  deep  with  machine  gun  shelters  carefully 
prepared.  Behind  this  front  line  at  thirty  yards  intervals 
they  had  two  other  lines  with  lower  wire  and  shallower 
trenches.  Starting  from  our  left  these  trenches  ran  from 
west  to  east  on  our  side  of  two  small  villages  called  St. 
Georges  and  Landres  et  St.  Georges.  From  in  front  of  the 
latter  village  the  wire  turned  in  a  southeasterly  direction 
towards  us,  following  the  lowest  slope  of  the  Cote  de  Cha- 
tillon  and  embracing  LaMusarde  Ferme,  thence  swinging 
east  again  to  take  in  the  Tuilerie  Ferme.  The  Cote  de  Cha- 
tillon  was  a  high  wooded  knoll  which  commanded  tlie  ter- 
rain to  west  and  south. 

The  task  of  the  84th  Brigade  was  to  work  their  way 
through  the  Bois  de  Romagne  and  capture  the  two 
farms  and  the  Cote  de  Chatillon.  Our  brigade  front  was 
of  a  different  character,  and  with  its  own  particular  kind 


266        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

of  difficulty.  The  terrain  was  the  most  nearly  level  section 
we  had  seen  in  this  country,  and  was  mostly  open,  though 
with  irregular  patches  of  woods.  From  the  Cote  de  Maldah 
it  sloped  off  towards  the  north  to  a  small  brook  that  ran 
in  a  general  east  to  west  direction  through  ground  that 
was  a  bit  swampier  than  the  rest;  and  from  there,  rising 
gradually,  up  to  the  German  wire.  A  good  road  with  a 
bridge  over  the  brook  ran  northeast  and  southwest  between 
Sommerance  and  Landres  et  St.  Georges.  At  the  begin- 
ning it  lay  entirely  in  the  Ohio  sector  but  our  advance  to 
the  north  would  bring  us  astride  of  it. 

Our  attack  had  to  be  made  over  open  ground  with  the 
purpose  of  carrying  by  direct  assault  wired  entrenchments. 
It  was  the  warfare  of  191 6  and  191 7  over  again,  and 
everybody  knows  from  the  numerous  British  and  French 
accounts  of  such  action  that  it  can  be  accomplished  only  by 
tremendous  artillery  preparation,  and  that  even  then  gains 
must  be  made  at  a  great  loss  of  Infantry.  But  a  glance  at 
the  maps,  in  which  blue  dotted  lines  represented  the  enemy 
wire,  showed  us  that  we  had  greater  danger  to  fear  than 
the  resistance  which  would  come  from  our  direct  front. 
The  blue  dots  ran  straight  across  the  right  of  the  Ohio  front 
and  all  of  ours,  and  then  swung  in  a  southerly  direction  for 
a  kilometer  or  more.  They  prophesied  eloquently  to  anyone 
who  had  the  slightest  knowledge  of  war  that  our  main 
danger  was  to  come  from  our  right  flank  unless  that  hill 
could  be  taken  first.  Donovan's  desire  was  to  advance  until 
we  would  be  on  a  level  with  the  wire  to  our  right,  hold  that 
line  with  a  sufficient  number  of  troops  to  guard  against 
counter  attack,  and  throw  in  our  main  strength  on  the  left 
of  the  84th  Brigade,  they  striking  from  the  south  and  we 
from  the  west  until  the  Cote  de  Chatillon  should  be  taken. 
Continuing  the  advance  from  there,  we  could  take  Landres 
et  St.  Georges  from  the  east.  The  orders  however  were 
to  attack,  head  on,  with  four  regiments  abreast.  The  84th 
Brigade  was  given  three  hours  start  to  fight  their  way 
through  the  southernmost  German  defences.     It  w^as  cal- 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  26T 

dilated  that  they  could  get  far  enough  forward  during  this 
time  so  that  both  brigades  could  keep  advancing  in  even  line. 

Preparations  for  the  assault  were  made  difficult  by 
weather  conditions.  The  sun  never  shone  and  a  large  part 
of  the  time  it  rained  steadily.  It  was  difficult  to  observe 
the  enemy  lines  or  their  troop  movements  from  balloons, 
and  the  advantage  of  aeroplanes  was  theirs — not  ours.  The 
abominable  condition  of  the  roads  made  it  impossible  to  get 
sufficient  ammunition  forward  and  our  artillery  was  working 
under  a  great  handicap.  Facilities  for  communication  with 
the  front  line  were  poor  throughout  the  whole  action.  The 
wire,  strung  along  the  wet  ground,  was  all  the  time  getting 
out  of  order;  horses  were  few  and  runners  had  to  make 
their  way  back  through  seas  of  mud,  which  also  caused 
untold  difficulty  in  getting  forward  food  and  ammunition. 

However,  everything  was  planned  as  well  as  possible 
under  the  conditions.  It  was  arranged  to  have  tanks  to 
help  our  men  get  through  the  wire.  The  gas  and  flame 
Engineers  were  also  to  render  assistance,  and  Colonel  John- 
son sent  detachments  of  his  Engineers  (for  whom  I  have 
supplied  a  motto  from  an  old  song :  "Aisy  wid  the  Shovel 
and  Handy  with  the  Gun")  to  go  with  the  Infantry  as  wire- 
cutters,  and  to  follow  up  to  repair  roads. 

During  the  two  days  in  which  these  plans  were  being 
made  the  battle  activity  on  both  sides  was  conducted  mainly 
by  the  artillery.  Company  G  had  barely  occupied  its  posi- 
tion in  the  woods  on  the  evening  of  October  nth,  when  it 
was  subjected  to  a  heavy  shelling,  with  the  loss  of  M.  Black 
killed  and  Sergeant  Edward  McNamara,  Corporal  Framan, 
Kessler,  Dan  McSherry  and  William  McManus  wounded. 
Young  Jim  Gordon  of  Company  E  was  running  for  a  litter 
to  carry  off  the  wounded  when  a  fragment  from  a  gas  shell 
struck  him  in  the  chest  and  killed  him  instantly.  Arthur 
Brown  of  Company  I  was  killed  on  the  Cote  de  Maldah. 
Early  on  the  morning  of  the  12th  the  men  of  Company  C 
who  were  lying  along  the  southern  bases  of  the  hill  not  far 
from  a  battery  of  artillery  whicli  the  enemy  were  trying  to 


268        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

get,  had  some  shells  dropped  amongst  them  and  H.  Harb- 
ison, L.  Jones  and  Frank  Foley  were  killed  and  Gomian 
and  others  wounded. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Donovan  was  assigned  by  Colonel 
Mitchell  to  have  general  charge  of  the  situation  at  the  front 
while  he  with  Captain  Merle-Smith  as  operations  officer  and 
Captain  Meaney  as  Adjutant,  handled  it  from  the  P.  C.  in 
Exermont.  Lieutenant  Lawrence  Irving,  in  charge  of  the 
Intelligence  Section,  was  at  the  observation  post. 

Our  artillery  preparations  for  the  assault  were  begun  at 
3  :30  on  the  morning  of  October  14th.  Our  brigade,  in  touch 
with  the  82nd  Division  on  our  left,  jumped  off  at  8  130  in 
the  same  morning.  In  our  regiment  Companies  I  and  M 
were  in  advance,  with  K  and  L  in  immediate  support,  a  com- 
pany of  the  Wisconsin  Machine  Gunners  being  with  them 
and  our  2nd  Battalion  supplying  details  for  carrying  ammu- 
nition, etc.  The  front  wave  had  not  gotten  well  started 
before  it  was  evident  that  the  enemy  were  expecting  an  at- 
tack, and  from  the  beginning  our  men  went  forward  through 
steady  shell  fire  which  increased  as  their  purpose  became 
more  clearly  manifested.  Two  enemy  aeroplanes  flew  along 
the  Hues  of  our  Division  discharging  machine  guns  and  no 
doubt  keeping  their  own  artillery  posted  on  the  results  of 
their  fire.  But,  in  spite  of  losses,  our  men  kept  going  for- 
ward, stimulated  by  the  encouragement  of  Major  Reilley 
and  his  Company  Commanders  Walsh,  Guignon,  Given  and 
Rowley.  They  had  about  two  miles  to  go  before  reaching 
the  enemy's  wire. 

Captain  Rowley  with  Company  M  was  to  the  left  along- 
side of  the  Ohios  and  Captain  Michael  Walsh  to  the  right, 
and  at  the  beginning  in  touch  with  the  Alabamas,  a  touch 
which  was  soon  lost,  as  the  latter  regiment  came  to  close 
grips  with  the  enemy  at  a  point  further  south  than  our  point 
of  attack,  and  our  companies  pushing  northward  found  it 
dif^cult  to  maintain  liaison  with  them.  The  amount  of  time 
assigned  to  the  84th  Brigade  to  capture  Hill  288,  the  Tuilerie 
Farm,  and  the  defenses  at  the  base  of  the  Cote  de  Chatillon 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  269 

was  not  sufficient  for  the  magnitude  of  the  task  that  was 
given  them  to  accompHsh.  By  noon  their  hne  had  passed 
Hill  288  and  was  close  to  the  enemy  outposts,  but  at  that 
time  our  Brigade  was  already  at  their  Second  Objective. 
From  the  outset  the  most  destructive  lire  we  had  to  undergo 
came  from  machine  guns  firing  from  this  Cote  to  our  right 
and  enfilading  our  whole  line ;  and  the  further  forward  we 
got  the  more  destructive  it  became.  By  i  o'clock  half  of  the 
third  battalion  had  been  killed  or  wounded.  Colonel  Dono- 
van, with  Lieutenants  Wheatley  and  Betty,  and  Major 
Reilley  with  Lieutenant  Heller  and  Sergeant  Courtney,  were 
all  over  the  field  sustaining  the  spirits  of  the  men. 

There  is  no  tougher  experience  than  that  of  advancing 
over  a  considerable  distance  under  fire.  The  trouble  is  that 
the  men  are  being  shot  down  by  an  enemy  whom  they  cannot 
see.  They  reply  with  their  rifles  and  machine  guns,  but 
have  only  the  vaguest  hope  that  they  are  accomplishing  any- 
thing more  than  disconcerting  their  opponents.  When  a 
soldier  gets  where  he  can  see  the  foe  he  develops  a  sort  of 
hunter's  exhilaration.  His  blood  warms  up  and  he  actually 
forgets  that  the  other  fellow  is  shooting  at  him.  Advanc- 
ing in  the  open  against  trenches  he  has  only  the  sensations 
of  the  hunted.  Heavy  fire  begins  to  rain  around  them,  men 
are  hit,  the  line  drops,  each  man  in  whatever  shelter  he 
can  find.  Then  the  order  is  given  to  rise  and  go  forward 
again;  spurts  of  dust  are  kicked  up,  the  first  three  or  four 
men  to  advance  walk  into  the  line  of  bullets  and  go  down 
before  they  have  gone  ten  feet.  And  the  others  who  have 
seen  tliem  fall  must  go  straight  ahead  and  take  that  same 
deadly  chance,  never  knowing  when  they  themselves  will 
stop  a  German  missile.  It  takes  undaunted  leadership  and 
tremendous  courage  to  keep  going  forward  under  such  con- 
ditions. 

That  leadership  the  men  possessed  in  their  battalion  com- 
mander and  those  under  him.  Captain  Rowley,  a  quiet,  de- 
termined man,  kept  M.  Company  moving  forward  until  he 
was  knocked  senseless  by  a  tree  which  was  blown  down 


270  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

upon  him  through  the  explosion  of  a  shell.  His  place  was 
taken  by  Lieutenant  Collier,  who  was  shortly  afterwards 
also  wounded,  and  Lieutenant  Don  Elliott  found  himself  in 
command.  Company  I  was  led  by  Captain  Mike  Walsh  un- 
til he  received  a  long  tearing  wound  through  the  arm.  He 
left  his  Company  under  command  of  Lieutenant  Roderick 
Hutchinson,  who  led  the  company  until  he  too  was 
wounded,  and  started  back  alone  to  the  Dressing-Station 
under  the  slope  of  the  hill,  to  have  his  wound  bandaged  up. 
On  his  way  back  to  the  line  he  was  hit  once  more  and  in- 
stantly killed.  Nobody  knew  that  he  was  killed  until  his 
body  was  discovered  by  Edward  Healy,  who  buried  him; 
and  was  shortly  afterwards  killed  himself.  It  was  well  for 
his  Company  that  they  did  not  know  the  misfortune  they 
had  sustained  because  no  loss  in  our  whole  campaign  was 
more  deeply  felt  than  that  of  this  rugged,  whole-souled  sol- 
dier and  leader  of  men.  Companies  L  and  K,  under  Captain 
Given  and  Lieutenant  Guignon,  were  also  having  their 
troubles,  especially  Company  K  under  the  daring  leadership 
of  its  youthful  commander.  In  all  of  the  companies  there 
was  great  loss  amongst  our  old  time  non-coms  as  they 
moved  around  looking  after  the  men  instead  of  taking  shel- 
ter with  them. 

But  the  outstanding  figure  in  the  mind  of  every  officer 
and  man  was  Lieutenant  Colonel  William  J.  Donovan. 
Donovan  is  one  of  the  few  men  I  know  who  really  enjoys  a 
battle.  He  goes  into  it  in  exactly  the  frame  of  mind  that 
he  had  as  a  college  man  when  he  marched  out  on  the  grid- 
iron before  a  football  game,  and  his  one  thought  through- 
out is  to  push  his  way  through.  "Cool"  is  the  word  the 
men  use  of  him  and  "Cool"  is  their  highest  epithet  of  praise 
for  a  man  of  daring,  resolution  and  indifference  to  danger. 
He  moved  out  from  the  Cote  de  Maldah  at  the  beginning 
of  the  attack  with  his  headquarters  group,  just  behind  the 
supporting  companies — his  proper  place,  though  he  had  no 
intention  of  remaining  there  if  he  could  do  more  efficient 
work  further  forward.     He  had  prepared  himself  for  the 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  271 

task  he  had  determined  on  in  a  characteristic  way.  In- 
stead of  taking  off  all  signs  of  rank,  as  officers  are  sup- 
posed  to  do  to  avoid  being  made  a  mark  for  sharpshooters, 
he  had  donned  a  Sam  Brown  belt  with  double  shoulder 
straps,  so  that  none  of  his  men  could  miss  knowing  who  he 
was;  that  the  enemy  also  would  pick  him  out  was  to  him  a 
matter  of  serene  indifference.  As  soon  as  the  advance  began 
to  slow  up  under  the  heavy  losses,  he  passed  to  the  front  line 
of  the  leading  elements.  The  motto  of  the  Donovan  clan 
must  be  "Come  on."  It  was  "Come  on,  fellows,  it's  better 
ahead  than  it  is  here,"  or  "Come  on,  we'll  have  them  on  the 
run  before  long,"  or  with  his  arm  across  the  shoulder  of 
some  poor  chap  who  looked  worried,  "Come  on,  old  sport, 
nobody  in  this  Regiment  was  ever  afraid."  He  would  stand 
out  in  front  of  the  men  lying  in  shell  holes  into  which  he  had 
ordered  them,  and  read  his  map  unconcernedly  with  the 
Machine-gun  bullets  kicking  up  spurts  of  dust  around  his 
feet;  and  would  turn  smilingly,  "Come  on  now,  men,  they 
can't  hit  me  and  they  won't  hit  you."  It  was  more  like  a 
Civil  War  picture  than  anything  we  have  seen  in  this  fight- 
ing to  watch  the  line  of  troops  rushing  forward  led  by  their 
Commander. 

But  their  task  was  more  than  any  battalion  could  per- 
form. The  conditions  on  the  right  made  it  impossible  to 
reach  the  wire  in  front  with  strength  enough  to  break 
through  it.  The  84th  Brigade  was  doing  heroic  work,  but 
it  was  to  take  two  days  more  of  tremendously  hard  fighting 
for  them  before  the  Cote  de  Chatillon  could  be  reduced. 
The  nature  of  the  fighting  turned  their  front  obliquely  in 
a  northeast  direction,  while  our  Brigade  was  advancing  due 
north.  Major  Norris  of  the  Alabamas  filled  in  the  gap  be- 
tween our  right  and  their  left  during  the  afternoon,  thus  in- 
suring against  an  attack  from  the  Germans  which  might 
break  through  our  line.  Their  brigade  captured  Hill  288 
that  day  but  was  held  up  in  front  of  the  Tuilerie  Farm.  It 
was  not  until  tlie  evening  of  the  i6th  and  by  continuous  and 
desperate  fighting  that  our  gallant  brothers  of  the  84th  Bri- 


272  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

gade  pounded  their  way  to  the  crest  of  the  Cote  de  Chatil- 
lon. 

In  the  afternoon,  after  six  hours  of  battle,  Donovan  re- 
ported that  the  3rd  Battahon,  which  had  gotten  up  to  the 
slopes  under  the  German  wire,  was  too  badly  shot  up  to  be 
able  to  push  through.  He  requested  an  artillery  barrage  of 
an  hour  and  a  half  to  keep  the  Germans  distracted  while  he 
withdrew  the  3rd  Battalion  carrying  their  wounded,  through 
the  1st  Battalion  under  Major  Kelly,  who  would  take  their 
place.  At  dusk  Kelly  made  his  advance  by  infiltration, 
Company  C  on  the  left.  Company  D  on  the  right.  The  men 
stole  forward,  losing  heavily  but  taking  advantage  of  every 
inequality  in  the  surface  of  the  ground.  Towards  the  right 
of  our  position  a  rough  wagon  road  run  up  through  a  draw 
between  two  gradual  slopes  and  just  before  it  reached  the 
main  road  between  Sommerance  and  Land  res  it  passed 
through  a  deep  cut,  in  some  places  eight  feet  deep,  part  of 
which  was  included  in  the  enemy's  wire  defenses. 

The  battalion  fought  its  way  right  up  to  the  enemy's  wire, 
only  to  find  it  an  impassable  barrier.  Our  artillery  fire  had 
not  made  a  break  in  it  anywhere,  as  for  lack  of  aeroplanes 
to  register  the  effects  of  their  work  they  had  been  shooting 
entirely  by  the  map.  Groups  of  our  lads  dashed  up  to  the 
wire  only  to  be  shot  down  to  the  last  man.  Some  ran 
through  a  passage  made  for  the  roadway,  the  only  possible 
method  of  getting  through,  but  this  of  course  was  abso- 
lutely covered  by  the  German  guns,  and  every  man  that 
went  through  it  was  shot  and,  if  not  killed  outright,  taken 
prisoner.  Soldiers  of  ours  and  of  the  Engineers  with  wire- 
cutting  tools  lay  on  their  faces  working  madly  to  cut  through 
the  strands,  while  riflemen  and  grenadiers  alongside  of  them 
tried  to  beat  down  the  resistance.  But  they  were  in  a  per- 
fect hail  of  bullets  from  front  and  flank,  and  every  last 
man  was  killed  or  wounded.  Further  back  was  a  concen- 
tration of  artillery  fire,  of  bursting  shells  and  groans  and 
death,  that  made  the  advance  of  the  support  platoons  a  veri- 
table hell. 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  273 

The  attackers  finally  fell  back  a  short  distance  to  the 
deep  cut  in  the  road.  Our  second  attempt  to  break  through 
had  failed.  Major  Kelly  with  Lieutenant  Connelly  and 
parts  of  companies  A  and  C  held  this  place  as  a  vantage 
point  to  make  a  third  attempt  in  the  morning.  Bootz  was 
in  charge  on  the  left  of  the  main  road.  About  one  hundred 
and  fifty  yards  south  of  the  wire  the  ground  sloped,  and  on 
this  reverse  slope  Colonel  Donovan  established  his  P.  C, 
with  Lieutenant  Betty  as  his  adjutant,  Wheatley  having  been 
wounded.  With  him  also  were  detachments  from  the  Head- 
quarters and  Machine  Gun  Companies  under  Lieutenant 
Devine  and  Sergeants  Sheahan,  Heins,  Leo  Mullin,  Doherty 
and  Gillespie.  During  the  night,  accompanied  by  Sergeant 
Major  Bernard  White,  the  Colonel  himself  scouted  up  to  the 
enemy  wire  to  examine  the  conditions  for  the  next  days'  at- 
tack. Tanks  were  promised  to  roll  through  the  wire,  shoot 
up  the  machine  gun  nests  and  make  a  passage  for  the  infan- 
try. Morning  came  but  no  tanks  in  sight.  Lieutenant  Grose 
and  Boberg  and  Brosnan  of  Brigade  Headquarters  were 
scouring  the  roads  in  search  of  them.  It  took  two  hours 
to  get  a  message  back,  as  the  telephone  was  out.  The  ar- 
tillery barrage  ran  its  appointed  course  and  still  no  tanks. 
Kelly  once  more  made  his  attack,  under  conditions  that  he 
soon  discovered  to  be  impossible  for  success.  Every  man 
that  reached  the  wire  was  hit,  and  losses  were  heavy  in  his 
elements  further  back. 

About  half  an  hour  after  the  advance  began  a  rifle  bullet 
struck  Colonel  Donovan  in  the  leg,  going  through  the  bone 
and  rendering  him  helpless.  He  would  have  ordered  any- 
body else  to  be  evacuated,  but  he  refused  to  allow  himself 
to  be  removed.  In  answer  to  the  protests  of  his  Adjutant 
he  swore  he  would  stay  there  and  see  the  thing  through.  So 
he  lay  in  his  shell-hole  and  continued  to  direct  the  battle. 
It  was  bound  to  be  a  one-sided  one  until  the  tanks  should 
come  up.  Our  men  in  the  sunken  road  were  being  shelled 
by  trench  mortars  which  dropped  their  shells  into  the  nar- 
row cutting,  spreading  disaster.    Our  elements  in  the  more 


S74  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

open  ground  to  the  rear  were  under  continuous  shell  fire  as 
the  enemy  artillery  had  the  exact  ranges. 

One  of  the  creepiest  feelings  in  war  is  that  of  being  boxed 
in  by  artillery  fire.  A  shell  lands  to  the  right  of  a  group 
of  men;  no  harm  in  that — all  safe.  Then  one  lands  to  the 
left,  to  front,  or  rear,  and  the  next  is  closer  in  l^etween  them. 
Then  everybody  knows  what  is  happening.  That  square  is 
in  for  a  shelling  until  nothing  living  inside  it  will  escape 
except  by  miracle.  This  was  the  experience  of  many  a  group 
that  morning,  and  Colonel  Donovan  and  his  headquarters 
men  had  to  undergo  it  to  the  utmost.  There  always  has  to 
be  a  good  deal  of  motion  around  a  Post  of  Command,  so  this 
slope  was  made  a  special  target.  Shells  fell  all  over  it,  and 
men  were  blown  out  of  their  holes  by  di!-ect  hits.  Thus  per- 
ished Patrick  Connors  of  Company  H  and  Color  Sergeant 
William  Sheahan,  one  of  the  finest  and  bravest  of  men. 
Donovan  (and  Major  Anderson,  who  had  come  up  and  was 
lying  in  the  sam^e  hole  with  him)  escaped  without  further 
injury.  Messages  which  had  to  be  carried  the  short  dis- 
tance between  his  shell-hole  and  where  Kelly  was  were  sent 
with  difficulty,  many  runners  being  killed  or  wounded.  They 
had  no  direct  connection  with  the  rear.  It  was  a  lone  fight, 
but  both  Donovan  and  Kelly  were  of  the  same  mind,  not 
to  desist  from  the  attack  so  long  as  any  chance  remained  of 
putting  it  through. 

Finally  the  tanks  appeared  coming  up  the  road  from 
Sommerance.  Everybody  was  elated.  At  last  there  was  a 
chance  to  get  through  that  wire  and  mop  up  those  infernal 
machine  gun  nests.  But  the  tanks  w^ere  under  artillery  fire, 
some  of  which  was  evidently  doing  damage  to  them,  and 
with  disappointment  and  disgust  the  Infantry  saw  them 
pause,  turn  about  and  rumble  down  the  road  to  the  rear. 
About  lo :t,o  Captain  Buck,  who  had  been  wounded  and 
was  on  his  way  to  the  Dressing  Station,  brought  word  to 
Donovan  that  a  counter-attack  was  evidently  in  prepara- 
tion. Donovan's  party  urged  him  to  let  them  carry  him 
back,  but  he  swore  at  them,  and  ordered  them  to  bring  up 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  275 

more  machine  guns  and  the  Stokes  Mortars,  under  Lieuten- 
ant O'Donohue  and  Sergeant  Fitzsimmons.  These  were 
disposed  in  an  advantageous  position,  which  means  a  dan- 
gerous one,  and  the  counter-attack  was  smothered  in  its 
inception. 

By  II  :oo  o'clock  Donovan  had  decided  that  the  ist  Bat- 
talion had  too  many  losses  to  make  it  possible  for  them  to 
get  through.  He  told  Anderson,  who  was  with  him,  to 
return  and  bring  forward  his  battalion  so  that  Kelly's  men 
and  their  wounded  could  pass  through. 

Kelly,  whose  fighting  blood  was  up,  at  first  refused  to  re- 
tire, demanding  written  orders  from  his  chief  before  he 
would  give  up  his  claim  on  the  post  of  danger  and  glory. 
Donovan  gave  the  orders  and  then  permitted  himself  to 
be  carried  in,  leaving  the  situation  in  the  very  capable  hands 
of  Major  Anderson. 

This  relief  was  begun  about  noon  with  the  aid  of  a  heavy 
barrage  from  our  artillery,  of  which  nobody  in  the  line 
knew  the  exact  reason.  The  reason  was  that  Brigade  had 
ordered  another  attack  which  was  originally  scheduled  for 
11:15.  Merle-Smith  had  protested  that  we  had  only  one 
battalion  left  and  that  it  was  unwise  to  use  up  our  last  ef- 
fectives. The  only  result  was  that  the  barrage  was  ex- 
tended until  noon,  on  Colonel  Mitchell's  report  that  it 
would  be  impossible  to  get  the  orders  forward  to  the  front 
by  11:15.  He  sent  the  order  in  three  different  directions, 
but  none  of  his  messages  arrived  until  the  barrage  which 
was  to  cover  the  attack  had  passed  over  and  the  relief  of 
the  1st  battalion  had  already  begun. 

The  situation  was  a  stalemate.  We  had  made  an  ad- 
vance of  three  kilometers  under  desperate  conditions,  but 
in  spite  of  our  losses  and  sacrifices  we  had  failed  to  take 
our  final  objective.  Well,  success  is  not  always  the  reward 
of  courage.  There  is  no  military  organization,  no  matter 
how  famous,  that  has  not  its  record  of  failures.  In  this 
war  every  regiment  and  division  in  the  older  armies  has 
known  times  when  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  do  all 


276        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

that  it  was  hoped  they  might  be  able  to  accomplish,  and 
most  especially  when  they  were  called  upon  to  capture  well 
defended  trench  positions. 

Indeed,  since  191 5,  no  commanders  in  the  older  armies 
would  dream  of  opposing  to  strongly  wired  and  entrenched 
positions  the  naked  breasts  of  their  infantry.  They  take 
care  that  the  wire,  or  part  of  it  at  least,  is  knocked  down 
by  artillery  or  laid  flat  by  tanks  before  they  ask  unprotect- 
ed riflemen  to  try  conclusions  with  its  defenders.  When 
the  wire  is  deep,  and  still  intact,  and  strongly  defended, 
the  infantry  can  do  little  but  hang  their  heroic  bodies  on  it. 

But  we  shall  not  dwell  on  this.  The  most  glorious  day 
in  the  history  of  our  regiment  in  the  Civil  War  was  Fred- 
ericksburg, where  the  Old  69th  in  the  Irish  Brigade  failed 
to  capture  the  impregnable  position  on  ]Marye's  Heights, 
though  their  dead  with  the  green  sprigs  in  their  caps  lay 
in  rows  before  it.  Landres  et  St.  Georges  is  our  Freder- 
icksburg and  the  Kriemhilde  Stellung  our  Marye's  Heights. 

Whatever  the  mature  judgment  of  history  may  decide 
about  it,  the  opinion  of  our  Corps  Commander,  General 
Summerall,  was  the  one  that  counted  most.  He  had  been 
in  command  of  the  ist  Division  when  it  made  its  attack  in 
this  same  area,  and  was  promoted  after  the  battle  to  the 
duty  of  commanding  the  corps  into  which  we  moved.  On 
the  evening  of  the  15th  he  came  to  our  brigade  and  made 
a  visit  to  our  P.  C.  in  Exermont  to  demand  why  our  final 
objective  had  not  been  taken.  He  was  not  well  handled. 
Colonel  Mitchell  is  a  good  soldier,  and  one  of  the  finest 
men  in  the  world,  but  he  is  entirely  too  modest  to  say  a 
strong  word  in  his  own  defense.  Ever^^body  is  familiar 
with  the  kind  of  man  who,  in  spite  of  the  merits  of  his 
case,  makes  a  poor  figure  on  the  witness  stand.  Donovan, 
who  is  an  able  lawyer  and  likes  the  give  and  take  of  battle, 
verbal  or  otherwise,  would  have  sized  up  the  Corps  Com- 
mander's mood  and  would  have  been  planning  a  new  at- 
tack with  him  after  the  first  ten  minutes.  Captain  Merle- 
Smith  stated  the  facts  of  the  case — the  enfilading  fire  from 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  277 

the  Cote  de  Chatillon,  the  unbroken  wire  in  our  front,  the 
inadequacy  of  artillery  against  it  on  account  of  lack  of  air 
service  to  register  their  fire,  the  failure  of  the  tanks  and 
the  extent  of  our  losses.  General  Summerall  was  in  no 
mood  for  argument.  He  wanted  results,  no  matter  how 
many  men  w^ere  killed,  and  he  went  away  more  dissatisfied 
dian  he  had  come. 

As  a  result,  by  his  orders  the  Division  Commander  re- 
lieved General  Lenihan,  Colonel  Mitchell  and  also  Captain 
Merle-Smith  and  Lieutenant  Betty.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  a 
few  days  later  when  the  ill  humor  had  cooled  down,  Merle- 
Smith  was  sent  back  to  us  in  command  of  a  battalion  and 
Betty  also  returned.  When  General  Lenihan  submitted  his 
statement  of  the  actions  of  his  brigade  (supplemented  by 
messages  and  maps)  to  the  Army  commander,  General 
Liggett,  the  latter  assured  him  that  he  would  name  him  to 
fill  the  first  vacancy  in  a  combat  Brigade  on  the  fighting 
line.  This  happened  to  be  in  the  77th  Division,  and  two 
weeks  later  I  met  him  at  St.  Juvin,  still  in  line  and  going 
strong. 

I  do  not  wish  to  adopt  too  critical  a  tone  with  regard  to 
the  action  of  the  Corps  Commander.  He  is  the  military 
superior,  and  his  judgment  must  be  accepted  even  if  it  is 
wrong.  Moreover,  the  loss  of  rank  or  position  by  officers 
weighs  nothing  with  me  in  comparison  with  the  two  big  fac- 
tors :  the  proper  handling  of  the  men  under  them ;  and  vic- 
tory. In  the  heat  of  action  every  commanding  general  has 
to  make  rapid  decisions.  General  Summerall  came  to  one  of 
these  decisions  in  our  regard,  and  we  must  abide  by  it. 

But  speaking  as  an  historian,  I  think  that  his  decision  was 
wrong.  It  was  a  question  of  whether  our  Colonel  was  a  man 
to  get  out  of  his  regiment  all  that  it  was  capable  of.  No 
person  w^ho  knows  him  could  ever  accuse  Harry  D.  Mitchell 
of  losing  his  nerve  in  a  battle.  He  liked  a  fight.  He  would 
have  been  happier  out  on  the  line  as  Lieutenant  Colonel 
than  back  in  his  P.  C,  but  he  knew  that  there  was  nobody 
who  could  handle  an  attack  and  put  courage  and  dash  into 


278  FATHER  DUFFY^S  STORY 

it  better  than  Colonel  Donovan,  and  that  any  body  of 
troops,  even  less  experienced  and  willing  than  our  own, 
would  fight  to  the  last  under  such  leadership.  Colonel 
Mitchell's  spirit  was  equally  resolute  and  his  orders  crisp 
and  strong.  The  whole  regiment  was  devoted  to  him,  and 
anxious  to  do  their  very  best  under  his  command.  Indeed, 
amongst  the  older  men,  there  was  never  any  doubt  about 
our  ultimate  success.  It  had  taken  five  days  to  reduce  the 
German  resistance  at  the  Ourcq,  but  we  did  it.  With  more 
help  from  artillery  and  tanks,  they  said,  we  can  make  it 
yet.  The  worst  blow  to  our  morale  that  we  ever  received 
was  inflicted  by  the  order  relieving  our  Colonel. 

The  days  following  were  anxious  and  gloomy  ones  for 
us,  and  our  spirits  were  kept  up  by  the  unchanged  dry  hu- 
mor of  the  man  we  were  sorry  to  lose.  When  he  was  go- 
ing, I  said,  to  relieve  the  tension :  "Now  you  are  leaving 
us  just  when  I  had  you  running  fine  and  I'll  have  the  job 
of  breaking  in  another  new  Commanding  Officer."  "Fa- 
ther," he  said,  "this  continuous  change  of  Commanders 
would  break  up  any  other  regiment  I  ever  knew,  but  this 
old  regiment  can  keep  itself  going  on,  no  matter  who  com- 
mands it.  It  would  get  along  on  spirit  and  unity  if  it 
never  had  a  Commanding  Officer." 

Our  new  commander  was  Lieutenant  Colonel  Charles  H. 
Dravo,  who  had  been  Division  Machine  Gun  Officer.  A 
number  of  us  have  known  him  for  a  considerable  time 
and  like  him  already,  all  the  more  because  his  first  action 
was  a  report  on  conditions  in  the  regiment  which  was  aimed 
at  the  restoration  of  Colonel  Mitchell  to  his  command. 

We  had  53  officers  going  in  at  the  Argonne  and  of  those 
five  were  killed  and  fifteen  wounded.  Of  those  killed,  after 
Captain  Michael  Walsh,  the  greatest  sense  of  loss  was  felt 
at  the  death  of  Lieutenant  Andrew  Ellett  of  Company  E,  a 
soldier  of  unlimited  courage.  We  did  not  know  until  long 
afterwards  that  Lieutenant  Henry  Davis,  an  officer  of  the 
same  type,  who  had  been  wounded  by  shell  fire  on  October 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  279 

I2th,  died  in  Hospital.  Two  young  officers  who  were  com- 
paratively newcomers  in  the  Regiment,  but  who  had  made 
many  friends,  Lieutenants  William  O'Connor  and  John  P. 
Orr,  were  killed  on  the  field. 

Headquarters  Company  lost,  beside  Color  Sergeant 
Sheahan,  Sergeant  Edward  J.  Hussey,  with  Gustave 
Cosgrove  and  Charles  Schulmerick  and  James  Gaun- 
thier,  died  of  wounds. 

Company  A  lost  Sergeants  James  P.  Duff  and  Fred. 
Stenson;  Corporals  Sidney  H.  Clark,  Bernard  Mc- 
Owen,  John  Nallin,  and  Peter  Barbee,  David  Bignell, 
William  Cook,  Jeremiah  Dineen,  Silas  Donegan,  Ray- 
mond Fitzpatrick,  Charles  Freeman,  Frank  Gilday, 
Lester  Hess,  Oscar  Iverson,  Edward  Kelly,  Lafayette 
Sharp,  A.  B.  Harrell,  William  Smith,  William  Bress, 
Leo  Tully,  Charles  Hallberg  and  Earl  Wilder. 

Company  B  lost  Sergeants  James  Donnelly  and 
John  J.  Mahoney;  Corporal  Thomas  F.  Winters;  and 
Philip  Benoit,  Joseph  Cole,  Thomas  J.  Cronin,  David 
Dempsey,  Thomas  Doyle,  Dewey  Houck,  Jesse  John- 
son, Benjamin  Robert,  Ed  Zeiss,  Robert  Wallack. 

Company  C  lost  Sergeant  Edward  Kearin ;  Corpo- 
rals James  Farnan,  Arthur  Potter,  Daniel  J.  Slat- 
tery;  and  Avery  Bridges,  James  Cody,  Lloyd  Harris, 
Clinton  Hart,  Martin  Haugse,  W.  P.  Hensel,  Harold 
J.  Hogan,  Samuel  Key,  Daniel  Medler,  James  ]\Iur- 
nane,  J.  P.  Myers,  Charles  Nabors,  George  O'Neill, 
Anthony  Palumbo,  William  Fountain,  J.  H.  Reneker, 
Edward  Sheridan,  Francis  Conway  and  Thomas  D. 
Vegeau. 

Company  D  lost  Corporals  John  J.  Haggerty,  Harry 
Adkins,  William  Boetger,  Walter  Crisp,  Lacy  Castor, 
J.  W.  McPherson,  S.  Scardino,  W.  Schmelick;  and 
C.  R.  Kerl,  William  Cundiff,  Frank  Fall,  George  Sala- 
ducha,  R.  Robbins,  Lawrence  P.  Mahoney,  Peter  J. 
Wollner,  James  W.  Hasting,  Fred  Smith,  John  Mc- 


280  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Namara,  Gordon  Wynne,  Charles  Evers,  James  But- 
ler, Edward  Clement,  Frank  F.  De  Muth  and  Richard 
Fincke. 

Company  E  lost  Corporals  William  Dougherty,  Wil- 
liam Bechtold,  Matthew  Colgan,  and  George  Failing; 
and  Joseph  Carroll,  Frederick  Gluck,  Kennedy  Hardy, 
Fred  Conway  and  John  Naughton. 

Company  F  lost  Arthur  Armes,  William  M.  Bink- 
ley,  Charles  Park,  Fred  Riddles,  Joseph  Woodlief, 
Joseph  Elzear,  Charles  Ash. 

Company  G  lost  Daniel  McSherry,  Clarence  Leon- 
ard, Charles  Jacobs,  Marvin  Black,  John  Hemmer, 
Archie  Lilies,  William  McAIanus. 

Company  H  lost  Corporal  Clifford  Wiltshire,  Ar- 
thur N.  Frank,  Roger  Folson,  Clinton  Bushey,  J,  Mos- 
colo,  Patrick  Connors  and  heroic  Sergeant  John  J. 
Walker. 

Company  I  lost  Sergeants  Patrick  Collins  and  Wil- 
liam Harrison;  Corporals  Allen  Crowe  and  Charles 
Stone;  and  A.  G.  Brown,  Robert  Cousens,  Harry  Gill, 
Edw^ard  F.  Healy,  Earnest  Keith,  Albert  Mortenson, 
James  Nealon,  Gilbert  Neely,  George  A.  Peterson, 
Warren  Regan,  Thomas  Stokey,  Earl  Thayer,  Eleanor 
Yow^,  James  Brown,  Kenneth  Trickett. 

Company  K  lost  Sergeants  John  J.  Gavaghan  and 
John  J.  Butler;  Corporals  Henry  D.  Hawxhurst  and 
Thomas  Madden;  and  N.  Farhout,  John  P.  Quinlan, 
James  C.  Wright,  Joseph  Barzare,  John  L.  Sullivan, 
Francis  Gioio,  Daniel  Buckley,  Leonard  Giarusso,  An- 
drew Goeres,  Claude  Best,  George  Pennington. 

Company  L  lost  Corporal  Edward  Bloom  and 
Joseph  Metcalf,  Fred  Parr,  Homer  C.  Coin,  John  H. 
Jumper,  E.  Epperly,  John  P.  Ryan. 

Company  M  lost  Sergeant  Peter  Cooney;  Corporals 
Charles  T.  Elson,  Charles  J.  Brennan  and  William  H. 
Crunden;   and   John  T.   Byrnes,   Emmett   Davidson, 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  281 

Frank  Manning,  H.  F.  Brumley,  Patrick  J.  O'Neill, 
Charles  Blagg,  Joseph  McAndrews. 

]\Iachine  Gun  Company  lost  Harry  A.  Dearing,  Fred 
Martin,  John  A.  Claire,  Thomas  McCabe,  Thomas 
Norton,  Leonard  Hansen  and  John  McKay. 

Supply  Company  lost  Giuseppe  Mastromarino. 

Nobody  wants  to  talk  very  much  about  the  recent  battle. 
It  was  a  nightmare  that  one  does  not  care  to  recall.  Indi- 
vidual acts  do  not  stand  out  in  actions  of  this  kind.  It  is 
a  case  of  everybody  going  ahead  and  taking  the  punish- 
ment. Everybody  who  stood  up  under  it  and  kept  carry- 
ing on  deserves  the  laurel  crown.  Some  men,  however, 
stand  out  in  more  striking  way  than  their  companions, 
either  through  natural  coolness  and  willingness  to  take 
added  risks  or  by  their  acceptance  of  a  position  of  command 
that  the  chances  of  battle  offered  them.  Prominent  amongst 
these  is  Sergeant  Michael  Fitzpatrick  of  Company  L,  whose 
brother  Cornelius  was  killed  at  the  Ourcq,  and  who  took 
charge  of  a  platoon  and  kept  it  going  with  great  spirit 
after  First  Sergeant  Wittlinger  was  wounded.  The  veteran 
First  Sergeant  of  Company  K,  Tim  Sullivan,  was  also 
wounded  in  this  fight,  and  another  of  the  Sullivans,  John 
L,,  was  killed.  Company  K  also  lost  a  fine  character  in 
Sergeant  Gavaghan,  'a  stalwart,  heroic,  innocent-minded 
young  Irishman. 

When  Colonel  Donovan  called  for  the  Stokes  Mortars  to 
repel  the  threatened  counter-attack  on  the  morning  of  the 
15th,  the  pieces  were  set  up  under  the  slight  protection  of 
the  sloping  ground,  but  from  this  point  the  gunners  could 
not  observe  the  accuracy  of  their  own  fire.  So  Sergeant 
Fitzsimmons  ran  forward  to  the  top  of  the  slope,  making 
himself  an  easy  cockshot  for  the  German  gunners  while  he 
signalled  to  his  own  men  his  corrections  on  their  aim.  He 
escaped  himself  by  a  miracle  and  had  the  satisfaction  of 
seeing  the  shells  dropping  right  amongst  the  Germans  who 


282  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

were  gathering  for  the  attack,  and  doing  dreadful  execu- 
tion. 

The  battalion  runners  received  great  praise  from  every- 
body, as  they  had  to  take  untold  risks  in  moving  from 
place  to  place  without  shelter.  Ammunition  carriers  also 
had  a  dangerous  task,  those  from  Company  H  suffering 
severe  losses.  Amongst  those  killed  were  Corporal  Clifford 
Wiltshire,  a  nice  quiet  boy  who  was  married  to  Sergeant 
Winthrop's  sister;  and  Clinton  Bushey,  who  once  before 
was  reported  dead  when  out  on  the  digging  detail  during 
the  bombardment  of  July  15th.  The  sergeants  we  lost  were 
all  good  men.  Hussey  was  a  clean-cut  young  athlete ;  Duff 
and  Stenson  of  Company  A  were  both  very  dependable 
men,  as  were  also  Sidney  Clark,  who  did  great  work  at  the 
Ourcq,  and  Bernard  McOwen,  who  had  the  Croix  de 
Guerre.  Donnelly  and  Mahoney  of  B  had  worked  their 
way  up  from  being  privates  by  character  and  merit;  and 
Tom  Winters  was  also  a  good  man.  Eddie  Kearin  of  C 
was  one  of  the  best  liked  youths  in  the  regiment  and  James 
Faman,  a  solid  Irishman;  Dougherty,  Colgan,  Bechtold 
and  John  Naughton  of  E  have  figured  before  and  in  these 
annals;  also  Fred  Gluck,  heroic  litter-bearer.  Company  I 
was  hard  hit  in  the  loss  of  Patrick  Collins  and  William 
Harrison.  Charlie  Stone's  mother  v/as  the  last  person  I 
shook  hands  with  before  our  train  left  Camp  Mills  for  the 
transport.  Robert  Cousens  was  killed  while  looking  after 
his  brother  who  had  been  wounded.  Sergeant  Peter  Coo- 
ney  oi  M  Company  was  out  with  the  regiment  in  '98  and 
the  three  corporals,  Elson,  Brennan,  and  Crunden,  were 
fine  types  of  soldiers.  Harry  Dearing,  John  Claire,  John 
McKay  and  the  others  from  the  IMachine  Gun  Company 
will  be  sorely  missed  by  their  fellows. 

With  Colonel  Donovan  on  the  slope  on  October  15th 
were  Sergeants  of  Headquarters  Company  and  the  Ma- 
chine Gun  Company.  The  Colonel  told  me  later  that  the 
shell  which  blew  Sergeant  Sheahan  heavenward  took  the 
legs  off  another  Irish  soldier  who  was  with  him.     This  I 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  283 

knew  was  Patrick  Connors.  Another  Irishman  jumped 
from  a  neighboring  shell-hole,  picked  up  the  wounded  man 
and  kissed  him,  saying:  "Me  poor  fellow,  me  poor  fel- 
low." He  put  tourniquets  on  the  stumps  and  then,  unaided, 
started  down  the  dangerous  slope  carrying  him  to  the  rear. 
Gillespie  and  Doherty  tell  me  that  this  deed  was  performed 
by  Corporal  John  Patrick  Furey  of  Company  H,  who  was 
in  charge  of  the  ammunition  carriers  for  the  machine  guns. 
Furey  had  been  wounded  already  himself,  and  the  sergeants 
wanted  him  to  go  to  the  rear,  but  he  refused,  as  so  much 
depended  on  keeping  our  machine  guns  fed.  When  he  was 
carrying  Connors  back  they  shouted  to  him  to  get  in  an 
ambulance  when  he  got  there;  but  later  in  the  morning 
Furey  reappeared  alongside  them  after  his  two-mile  jour- 
ney in  each  direction;  and  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
strain  of  carrying  his  burden  had  reopened  another  wound 
that  he  got  at  the  Ourcq.  It  was  an  exhibition  of  tender- 
heartedness and  sheer  courage  that  honors  humanity. 

Liaison  men  have  to  take  untold  risks  in  action  of  this 
kind.  Of  Major  Kelly's  group  in  the  sunken  road  nearly 
all  were  killed  or  wounded.  Young  Eddie  Kelly  (killed), 
Cody  (killed).  White  (a  hero  in  every  battle),  Liebowitz 
(wounded),  and  Matty  Rice  (often  mentioned  in  these 
annals)  worked  their  way  from  Kelly  to  Bootz  or  from 
Kelly  to  Donovan.  When  they  were  gone  Corporal  Thomas 
O'Kelly  offered  to  deliver  messages,  but  the  Major  wished 
to  keep  him  by  his  side  as  a  valuable  man  in  combat.  "Send 
me.  Major,"  insisted  Tom,  "Fll  carry  it  through,  and  if  I 
don't  come  back,  you'll  know  I'm  dead."  He  got  it  through 
alright,  though  wounded.  He  wanted  to  go  back  with  a 
message,  but  Colonel  Donovan  ordered  him  to  go  back  to 
the  Dressing-Station.  Every  last  man  amongst  these  men 
deserves  a  citation  for  bravery. 

In  this  battle  one  of  the  tasks  which  required  the  great- 
est courage  was  that  of  getting  back  the  wounded  when 
the  retirement  from  the  wire  of  the  first  battalion  was  or- 
dered.    Their  rescuers  had  to  abandon  their  pits  and  ad- 


284  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

vance  in  full  view  of  the  enemy  in  their  work  of  succor. 
The  men  who  stood  out  in  accomplishing  this  dangerous 
duty  were  in  Company  A :  First  Sergeant  Thomas  Swee- 
ney and  Sergeant  John  H.  Dennelly;  In  Company  C,  First 
Sergeant  Thomas  P.  O'Hagan,  Sergeant  Joseph  Burns  and 
Corporal  Archie  Reilly.  Also  Mike  Donaldson,  of  Com- 
pany I,  who  volunteered  for  this  service  and  carried  in  man 
after  man  under  heavy  fire.  Two  of  the  liaison  men  from 
A  Company,  Matthew  J.  Kane  and  Martin  Gill,  as  also  John 
Hammond  and  Fred  Craven  of  Company  C,  are  also  highly 
recommended  for  the  cheerful  and  efficient  manner  in  which 
they  performed  their  perilous  job. 

Company  M  is  very  proud  of  its  youngest  corporal,  little 
Jimmy  Winestock,  the  mildest  looking  and  most  unassum- 
ing youth  in  the  regiment.  When  troops  advance  under 
fire,  there  are  always  some  who  get  strayed  from  their 
command,  especially  when  their  platoon  leaders  have  been 
hit.  Jimmy  picked  up  all  these  stragglers  from  their  com- 
panies, formed  them  into  a  detachment,  issued  his  com- 
mands as  if  he  were  a  major  at  least,  and  led  them  forward 
into  the  thick  of  action. 

Major  Lawrence  very  early  in  the  battle  had  established 
his  regimental  dressing  station  as  near  to  the  front  line  as 
an  ambulance  could  possibly  go.  There  was  absolutely  no 
protection  where  he  was,  and  his  group  which  included 
Chaplain  Holmes  and  the  "Y"  Athletic  Director,  Mr.  Jew- 
ett,  were  exposed  to  danger  from  shells  at  all  times.  Father 
Hanley  stuck  as  usual  to  his  beloved  Third  Battalion  and 
was  out  further  living  in  a  hole  in  the  side  of  a  hill,  with 
Doctors  Kilcourse,  Martin,  Mitchell,  Cowett  and  our  dental 
officers  Bam  ford  and  Landrigan,  who  always  rendered  good 
work  in  battle. 

When  they  were  carrying  Donovan  in  I  met  him  at  Law- 
rence's station.  He  looked  up  from  the  stretcher  and  said 
to  me  smilingly,  "Father,  you're  a  disappointed  man.  You 
expected  to  have  the  pleasure  of  burying  me  over  here." 
*'I  certainly  did.  Bill,  and  you  are  a  lucky  dog  to  get  ofif 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  285 

with  nothing  more  than  you've  got."  He  was  in  great  pain 
after  his  five  hours  lying  with  that  leg  in  the  shell-hole, 
but  it  had  not  affected  his  high  spirits  and  good  humor. 
He  was  still  of  opinion  that  the  regiment  could  get  through 
the  wire,  with  proper  artillery  preparation  and  coordination 
of  infantry  forces. 

On  October  12th  I  was  in  Jim  Mangan's  little  dugout  at 
Exermont  with  his  Lieutenants  Joe  McNamara,  McCarthy 
and  Flynn  when  in  walked  Dennis  O'Shea,  formerly  our 
color  sergeant,  and  now  a  Lieutenant  in  the  ist  Division. 
Accompanying  him  was  Father  Terence  King,  a  Jesuit 
Chaplain.  They  had  been  detailed  for  the  task  of  burying 
their  regimental  dead.  It  was  a  joyous  meeting,  but  they 
had  one  t^ing  to  tell  that  made  me  sad.  Father  Colman 
O'Flaherty  had  been  killed  by  shell  fire  while  attending  to 
the  wounded.  I  had  never  met  him,  but  when  we  were 
alongside  of  the  ist  after  Saint  Mihiel  I  met  a  large  num- 
ber of  officers  and  men,  all  of  whom  spoke  of  him  with 
affectionate  admiration.  An  Irishman,  well  read,  brilliant 
and  witty  in  conversation,  independent  in  the  expression  of 
his  opinions ;  sometimes  irritatng  at  first  encounter  by  rea- 
son of  his  sallies,  but  always  sure  in  the  long  run  to  be  ad- 
mired for  his  robust  and  attractive  personality. 

I  got  this  story  with  no  names  mentioned  and  was  too 
discreet  to  ask  for  them.  A  patrol  was  out  for  the  purpose 
of  getting  in  touch  with  the  enemy.  As  they  were  ascend- 
ing the  reverse  slope  of  the  hill  a  young  officer  who  was 
with  two  or  three  men  in  advance  came  running  back, 
stooping  low  and  calling  breathlessly  to  the  Lieutenant  in 
command,  "The  Germans!  The  Germans!  The  Germans 
are  there."  Nobody  thought  him  afraid  but  his  tone  of 
excitement  was  certainly  bad  for  morale.  There  was  a  sud- 
den halt  and  a  bad  moment,  but  the  situation  was  saved 
when  a  New  York  voice  in  a  gruff  whisper  was  heard, 
"Well,  what  the  hell  does  that  guy  think  we  are  out  here 
looking  for? — Voilets?"  If  eloquence  is  the  power  to  say 
things  that  will  produce  the  desired  effect  on  one's  hearers, 


286  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

neither  Demosthenes  nor  Dan  O'Connell  himself  ever  made 
a  better  speech. 

We  were  very  short  of  officers  during  the  Argonne  fight 
and,  since  advancing  under  shell  fire  necessitates  a  deliber- 
ate scattering  of  men,  a  great  deal  depends  upon  the  efB- 
ciency  of  our  non-coms,  especially  the  sergeants.  The  re- 
sult of  their  activity  was  that  an  extraordinary  number 
of  them  were  wounded.  I  came  on  Sergeants  Tom  O'Mal- 
ley  and  Jim  O'Brien  of  Company  D,  both  wounded  severely 
and  bound  for  the  rear.  "Tom,"  I  said,  "what  did  you 
want  to  get  yourself  hit  for?  We're  short  of  officers  as  it 
is,  and  it's  only  men  like  you  that  can  put  this  thing 
through."  "Well,  Father,"  says  Tom,  smilingly  apologetic, 
"you  see  it's  like  this :  a  sergeant  stands  an  awful  fine 
chance  of  gettin'  hit  as  things  are  goin'  now.  We  got  a 
lot  of  new  min  that  he's  got  to  take  care  of  to  see  that  they 
don't  get  kilt;  and  whin  the  line  moves  forward,  there's 
some  of  thim  nades  a  bit  of  coaxin'." 

I  have  gathered  from  my  record  a  list  not  only  of  officers, 
but  also  of  non-coms  wounded  in  this  battle,  because  they 
deserve  to  be  commemorated  as  men  who  have  fought 
throughout  the  war,  men  who,  if  they  have  not  been  in 
every  one  of  our  battles,  have  a  wound  stripe  to  show  the 
reason  for  their  absence,  and  who  have  gained  their  stripes 
of  office  by  good  soldiering  in  camp  and  in  the  field. 

Colonel  William  J.  Donovan;  Captains,  Oscar  L.  Buck, 
Edmond  J.  Connelly,  John  J.  Clifford,  John  F.  Rowley; 
First  Lieutenants,  James  Collier,  Paul  D.  Surber,  Roderick 
J.  Hutchinson;  Second  Lieutenants,  Joseph  P.  Katsch, 
Charles  D.  Huesler,  Clarence  Johnson,  Samuel  S.  Swift, 
Lester  M.  Greff,  Henry  W.  Davis  (Deceased),  Arthur  N. 
Hallquist,  John  J.  Williams. 

Company  A,  Sergeants  Purtell,  Armstrong,  Sweeney; 
Corporals  Gladd,  Roberts,  Newton,  Thynne,  Rice,  Wylie. 

Company  B,  Sergeants  Thornton,  Mulholland,  Meniccoci, 
Graham,    Gilbert,    Whalen,    Coyne;    Corporals    Quigley, 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  287 

Brady,  Geraghty,  Van  deWerken,  Longo,  Lofare,  Hayes, 
Healey,  Lehman,  Neary. 

Company  C,  Sergeants  James  Burns,  Hillig,  Hennessey, 
Knight,-  McNiff;  Corporals,  James  Kelly,  Hannigan,  Ly- 
nott,  Minogiie,  Munz,  O'Kelly,  Osberg,  Oiiinn,  Stratico, 
BIythe,  Boyle. 

Company  D,  Sergeants  Crotty,  O'Malley,  Moran,  Shea- 
han,  McDonoiigh,  Tracey,  Morton;  Corporals  Dale,  Plant, 
Dalton  Smith,  Murray,  O'Dowd,  Lynch,  O'Brien,  DeVoe, 
Terry  O'Connor,  Bambrick,  McAuliffe,  Edward  B.  Smith, 
Reilly,  Harkins,  Tuers,  Brady,  Thompson,  O'Connell. 

Company  E,  Corporals  Corbett,  Maloney,  Geary. 

Company  F,  Corporal  Patrick  Frawley. 

Company  G,  Sergeants  McNamara,  William  Farrell, 
James  J\Iurray;  Corporals,  Framan,  Allen,  Christy. 

Company  H,  Sergeant  Walker;  Corporals,  McGorry, 
Ryan,  McGlynn,  Doran. 

Company  I,  Sergeants  Shanahan,  Lyons,  Dynan,  Mullin, 
Joseph  O'Brien;  Corporals,  Cousens,  Dexter,  Gaul,  Hor- 
gan,  Kennedy,  Smiser,  Welsh,  Zarella,  Beyer,  Lenihan, 
New,  Regan,  Conway,  Hettrick,  Neary. 

Company  K,  Sergeants  Timothy  Sullivan,  Gleason,  Hell- 
rigel;  Corporals  Van  Yorx,  McKessy,  Clinton,  Ryan,  Oster- 
meyer,  Casey,  Gallagher,  LeGall,  McMahon,  Caraher, 
Wakely,  Hoey. 

Company  L,  Sergeants,  Southworth,  Kieman,  Wittlinger, 
Fitzpatrick,  Mullins,  Blood;  Corporals  Kennedy,  Martin, 
O'Brien,  Oakes,  McCallum,  George  McCue,  Murphy,  John 
J,  Murphy,  Hearn. 

Company  M,  Sergeants  Major,  Clark,  May;  Corporals 
Igo,  Feely,  Begley,  Shear,  Scott,  Donovan,  McGovern, 
Cook,  Bailey,  Kiernan,  Berger,  Harry  Murray,  Knowles. 

Headquarters  Co.,  Corporals  Dick,  Brochon,  Albrecht. 

Machine  Gun  Co.,  Sergeants  Stevens,  Spillane,  Gillespie, 
Doherty;  Corporals  Erard,  Cohen. 


288  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ESPERANCE   FARM 

October  28th,  1918 
Our  rear  Headquarters  are  in  two  buildings  on  the  main 
road  that  parallels  the  river  Aire.  In  one  of  them  is  the 
Supply  Company  and  the  band.  Solicitude  for  the  welfare 
of  bandsmen  is  the  sole  tribute  that  the  army  pays  to  art. 
In  a  neighboring  building  is  an  Ambulance  Company  and 
our  Company  Clerks,  who  have  been  ordered  to  be  left  in 
the  rear  because  records  are  never  properly  made  out  if  the 
Company  Clerk  becomes  a  casualty.  I  often  make  use  of  a 
returning  ambulance  to  come  back  to  Captain  Kinney's  Ho- 
tel for  a  decent  sleep  and  a  good  breakfast.  Across  the 
road  in  the  field  a  number  of  the  men  have  made  little  dug- 
outs for  themselves,  as  the  buildings  are  overcrowded. 

Shell  fire  does  not  come  back  this  far  except  occasionally, 
but  the  nights  are  often  made  hideous  by  enemy  bombing 
planes.  Aeroplanes  carrying  machine  guns  are  futile 
things,  but  a  plane  at  night  dropping  bombs  is  absolutely 
the  most  demoralizing  thing  in  war.  It  is  a  matter  of  psy- 
chology. The  man  in  front  discharging  his  rifle  has  the 
hunter's  exhilaration.  Even  shells  can  be  dodged  if  not 
too  numerous,  and  after  a  man  has  dropped  on  his  face  or 
jumped  into  a  doorway  and  has  escaped,  there  is  the  satis- 
faction that  a  hare  must  have  when  it  eludes  the  dogs  and 
pants  contentedly  in  its  hole.  But  when  one  lies  at  night 
and  hears  the  deep  buzz  of  a  plane  overhead,  and  most  es- 
pecially when  the  buzz  ceases  and  he  knows  that  the  plane 
is  gliding  and  making  ready  to  drop  something,  the  one 
feeling  that  comes  is  that  if  that  fellow  overhead  pulls  the 
lever  at  the  right  spot,  a  very  very  wrong  spot,  it  means 
sudden  and  absolute  destruction.  There  is  no  way  of  get- 
ting away  from  it.     One  simply  lies  and  cowers. 

Last  night  we  heard  the  crunching  roar  six  times  re- 
peated in  the  field  just  across  the  road.  Flannery  and  I 
got  up  and  pulled  on  our  shoes  to  go  over  and  see  what 
happened.    Mules  had  been  hit  and  two  of  our  men  slightly 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  289 

wounded.  The  bombs  made  holes  in  the  soft  earth,  ten 
feet  deep  and  nearly  twelve  in  diameter,  and  one  of  them 
had  fallen  at  the  feet  of  two  of  our  lads  and  had  not  ex- 
ploded. I  was  particularly  anxious  about  a  lot  of  nice 
youngsters  whom  I  had  picked  out  after  St.  Mihiel  for  the 
Band — John  Kyle,  Robert  Emmett  Mitchell,  Howard 
Casey,  Pat  Campion,  Will  Maroney,  Will  King,  George 
Forms,  John  Killoran,  Denis  Glynn,  Will  Howard, — all 
lads  that  had  volunteered  before  they  were  eighteen.  I 
found  them  unharmed  and  rather  enjoying  the  show. 

Lieutenant  Bernard  Byrne,  who  is  not  long  with  us  and 
whose  experience  in  warfare  has  not  been  of  great  dura- 
tion, was  ordered  from  the  Supply  Company  a  couple  of 
days  ago  to  duty  with  Company  G.  His  first  night  in  line 
he  took  out  a  patrol  which  he  handled  admirably  and  came 
back  with  two  prisoners.     A  very  good  start  indeed. 

Everybody  has  slept  in  his  clothes  for  weeks.  It  would 
not  be  true  to  say  that  we  never  take  them  off,  because 
that  is  part  of  the  morning,  though  not  of  the  evening 
ritual.  Every  morning  officers  and  men,  refined  or  rough- 
neck, strip  to  the  waist  for  the  process  of  "Reading  his 
shirt."  Not  to  put  too  fine  a  touch  to  it,  we  are  all  crawl- 
ing with  lice.  Holmes  has  a  boy  who  is  at  the  interesting 
age  of  four,  and  his  wife  writes  to  him  the  usual  domestic 
stories  about  his  bright  ways  and  sayings.  "You  ask  her 
if  that  kid  can  read  his  shirt.  Tell  her  I  said  that  his  old 
man  can  do  it."  Mrs.  Holmes  sent  word  back  to  Father 
Duffy  that  while  the  youthful  prodigy  had  not  all  the  ac- 
complishments of  a  soldier  he  could  hike  with  any  of  us. 
I  did  not  get  the  message  for  weeks  afterwards,  as  my 
brother  Chaplain  was  very  much  run  down  and  Major 
Lawrence  and  I  shipped  him  off,  despite  his  protests,  to  the 
hospital.  I  do  not  need  to  worry  about  Father  Hanley. 
As  long  as  Ambrose  Sutcliff's  Goulash  Wagon  can  supply 
him  with  an  occasional  meal,  he  will  keep  going  any  place 
I  put  him — though  that  is  not  the  right  way  to  phrase  it, 
for  I  always  have  to  keep  him  pulled  back  from  the  places 


290  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

where  he  thinks  he  ought  to  be.  I  think  I  will  take  both  my 
Chaplains  home  with  me  to  the  Bronx  as  curates.  A  Catho- 
lic church  with  a  Methodist  annex  would  be  a  novelty. 
Back  in  the  peaceful  days.,  a  Jew  friend  of  mine  whom  I 
was  showing  oyer  my  combination  church  and  school  said 
to  me,  with  the  cjuick  business  sense  of  his  race,  "You  use 
this  building  for  Church  on  Sunday  and  for  school  five 
days  in  the  week.  The  only  day  it's  idle  is  Saturday. 
What  you  ought  to  do  is  to  hire  a  good  smart  young  Rabbi 
and  run  a  synagogue  on  the  Sabbath.  I'll  bet  you'll  make 
money  at  it." 

The  two  weeks  that  elapsed  between  October  i6th  and 
November  ist  were  the  dreariest,  draggiest  days  we  spent 
in  the  war.  The  men  lay  out  on  the  bare  hillsides  in  little 
pits  they  had  dug  for  themselves,  the  bottoms  of  which 
were  turned  into  mud  by  frequent  rains.  They  had  one 
blanket  apiece,  and  w^ere  without  overcoats,  underwear  or 
socks,  in  the  unpleasant  climate  of  a  French  Autumn. 
They  were  dirty,  lousy,  thirsty,  often  hungrj^;  and  nearly 
every  last  man  was  sick. 

Captain  Bootz,  an  old-time  regular  army  man  and  there- 
fore not  sympathetic  with  imaginary  ills,  made  the  follow- 
ing report  on  Anderson's  battalion  as  early  as  October  17th. 
"Checked  up  strength  of  battalion  shows  405  men  for  ac- 
tive combat,  including  liaison  detail.  Of  this  number  about 
35%  are  suflfering  various  illnesses,  especially  rheumatism, 
-colds  and  fevers.  The  Company  commanders  state  that 
these  men  are  not  receiving  medical  treatment,  which  should 
be  given  to  them  without  fail  or  conditions  will  be  worse 
in  the  next  day  or  so.  Some  men  are  doubled  up  and 
■should  really  be  in  the  hospital.  I  cannot  allow  these  men 
to  leave,  as  it  would  set  a  precedent  for  many  others  to 
follow,  and  this  would  deplete  our  fighting  strength  so 
much  more.  First  aid  men  attached  to  companies  have  no 
medical  supplies  other  than  bandages.  A  lack  of  proper 
clothing,  such  as  overcoats,  heavy  underwear  and  socks, 
brings  on  a  great  many  of  these  maladies.     The  majority 


THE  ARGONNE  0FFENSI\T3  291 

of  the  men  have  summer  undet^'ear,  if  any,  and  no  over- 
coat and  only  one  blanket;  and  this  is  entirely  inadequate 
to  keep  a  soldier  in  fit  physical  condition  for  field  service 
in  the  climate  that  is  found  this  time  of  year  in  France.  I 
deem  it  my  duty  that  this  be  brought  to  the  attention  of 
higher  authorities  so  that  they  may  be  rightly  informed 
as  to  the  actual  conditions  we  are  living  in,  and  that  means 
be  found  to  have  the  defect  remedied  immediately." 

As  the  days  went  on,  conditions  got  no  better.  Hun- 
dreds and  hundreds  of  men  had  to  be  evacuated  as  too 
weak  to  be  of  any  military  value ;  and  nothing  but  the  need 
of  man-power  kept  our  doctors  from  sending  half  the  regi- 
ment to  the  hospital.  The  only  relief  from  monotony  was  an 
occasional  night  patrol,  or  the  prospects  which  were  held  out 
to  us  of  a  fresh  order  to  attack.  In  spite  of  the  bloody  nose 
we  had  already  received,  our  men  wished  for  the  order  to 
try  again.  Patrols  and  observation  posts  reported  a  lessen- 
ing of  the  enemy's  strength,  and  our  fellows  felt  certain  that 
if  the  tanks  would  do  their  share  they  could  get  through. 
They  had  met  their  first  repulse.  If  they  had  been  in  the 
war  as  long  as  the  British  or  French,  they  would  have 
learned  to  take  it  philosophically  as  part  of  the  give  and  take 
of  the  game.  But  it  was  their  first  one,  and  they  were  burn- 
ing with  the  desire  to  get  back  at  the  enemy. 

On  the  2 1  St  our  brigade  relieved  the  84th,  our  2nd  Bat- 
talion taking  over  the  front  line  on  the  north  edge  of  the 
Cote  de  Chatillon,  The  next  day  orders  were  out  for  a  new 
attack  in  which  the  165th  were  to  work  around  the  eastern 
end  of  Landres  et  Saint  George.  Everybody  was  on  the 
qui  vive  for  a  new  battle  but  the  thing  dragged  from  day 
to  day  until  the  26th,  when  word  came  that  we  were  to  be 
taken  out  of  the  line  and  that  the  Second  Division  was  to 
make  the  attack.  Our  men  \vere  sorely  disappointed  and 
grieved  about  it,  but  the  decision  was  a  proper  one.  With 
the  artillery  support  that  has  been  gathering  in  our  rear  I 
have  no  doubt  that  our  fellows  could  have  broken  through, 
but  we  have  become  too  weak  in  man  power  to  exploit  an 


292  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

initial  victory  in  a  way  that  should  be  done  to  make  the 
most  of  it.  Three  weeks  in  line  under  such  conditions  do 
not  fit  men  for  the  hardships  of  a  sustained  advance.  Dur- 
ing this  period  we  lost  killed,  in  Compan}^  H,  William  Mur- 
ray and  P.  Nicholson;  and  in  Company  M,  Davidson  and 
Patrick  Ames,  a  soldier  who  never  knew  fear. 

October  28th,  1918. 

I  went  in  to  see  General  Menoher  about  my  concerns  as 
Division  Chaplain.  After  my  business  was  done  he  said 
that  he  had  received  orders  to  send  me  back  to  the  States 
to  make  a  speaking  tour  for  the  Welfare  Funds.  He  kept 
talking  about  these  orders  long  enough  to  get  me  worried, 
although  as  I  watched  his  face  closely  I  thought  I  could 
detect  a  humorous  and  reassuring  twinkle  in  his  pleasant 
eyes.  Finally,  after  having  been  kept  on  the  griddle  for 
five  minutes,  I  ventured  the  question,  "May  I  ask,  General, 
what  reply  you  made  to  these  orders?"  Then  he  laughed 
in  his  genial  way,  "I  told  them  that  you  had  better  work 
to  do  here  than  there  and  that  I  was  not  going  to  let  you 
go,"    I  certainly  do  like  that  man. 

Our  land  battles  during  these  days  are  being  conducted 
mainly  at  night  as  fights  between  patrols,  the  war  in  the  day 
time  being  mainly  in  the  air.  On  October  i6th  a  Ger- 
man plane  which  had  been  separated  from  its  escadrille 
came  wabbling  over  the  heads  of  Major  Lawrence's  group 
and  landed  in  a  field  alongside  them,  the  occupants  being 
made  prisoners.  Two  days  later  I  had  the  good  luck  to  wit- 
ness from  the  same  spot  a  unique  spectacle.  There  had 
been  an  air  fight  in  which  ours  got  the  better  of  it.  A  Ger* 
man  plane  was  e\'idently  in  a  bad  way.  As  we  watched  it 
we  saw  a  dark  object  drop  from  it,  and  while  we  held  ouf 
breath  in  sympathetic  terror  for  a  human  being  dropping  to 
destruction,  a  parachute  opened  above  him — the  first  in- 
stance of  the  kind  we  have  seen  in  this  war.  Captain  Bootz, 
who  was  under  him  at  the  time,  said  that  he  managed  it 
by  climbing  out  on  the  tail  of  his  plane  and  dropping  ofiS 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  293 

h  from  the  rear.  The  great  difficulty  about  using  a  para- 
chute for  aviators  has  been  that  the  on-moving  plane  hits 
the  ropes  before  they  can  drop  clear.  Most  of  the  air 
fights  have  been  the  result  of  the  determination  of  the  Ger- 
mans to  get  our  balloons.  They  brought  down  four  of 
them  one  afternoon,  much  to  our  disgust. 

There  is  a  stock  story  about  the  rookie  who  is  persuaded 
by  his  fellows  that  his  tin  hat  is  guaranteed  by  the  govern- 
ment to  turn  the  direct  hit  of  a  German  yy.  When  Colonel 
Dravo  and  the  rest  of  us  start  to  tell  how  an  inch  of  plank- 
ing turned  a  German  yy,  we  shall  be  greeted  with  smiles  of 
incredulity,  but  the  thing  actually  happened.  Dravo  has 
a  pleasant  little  Chalet  out  on  the  hill  263,  beautifully  situ- 
ated in  the  forest  and  affording  an  excellent  place  of  re- 
pose for  weary  American  officers  if  the  Germans  who  were 
kind  enough  to  build  it  would  only  leave  their  work  alone. 
But  the  hill  is  shelled  by  day  and  shelled  and  bombed  by 
night,  in  a  picky  sort  of  a  way.  A  small  portion  of  the 
shack  is  boarded  off  for  a  kitchen  and  in  it  sleep,  or  rather 
slept,  for  they  don't  like  the  place  any  more,  the  force  of 
our  Headquarters  mess :  Sergeant  Denis  Donovan,  Jimmy 
Dayton,  Tex  Blake,  IMcWalter,  and  John  McLaughlin  in 
superimposed  bunks,  so  that  the  lads  above  were  only  a 
couple  of  feet  below  the  roof.  A  shell  hit  just  above  them, 
the  explosion  ruining  the  roof  and  pitching  them  all  to  the 
floor;  but  every  particle  of  iron  in  it  spread  itself  into  the 
air  outside  of  the  building.  Luckily  for  them  it  must  have 
been  one  of  those  long-nosed  devils  that  explode  on  con- 
tact and  cause  much  greater  destruction  than  those  that 
plow  out  the  ordinary  shell  hole.  The  first  time  I  saw  the 
roads  barely  scratched  where  they  hit  I  thought  the  German 
powder  was  becoming  inferior.     I  know  better  now. 

Hallowe'en 

We  are  out  of  the  line  tonight  with  the  exception  of 
Reilley's  3rd  Battalion,  which  is  to  lie  out  there  in  their 


294        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

shelter  pits  under  our  barrage  and  whatever  the  Gennans 
may  send  back  in  reply  until  the  2nd  Division  goes  through 
them  tomorrow.  Twelve  months  ago  we  had  scarcely  left 
our  native  shores,  a  wonderful  year  in  the  lives  of  all  of  us, 
and  die  last  one  for  many  a  poor  fellow  now  sleeping  in  the 
soil  of  France.  A  lot  of  the  officers  are  crowded  together 
in  Kinney's  quarters  at  the  Esperance  Farm.  The  room  is 
hot  and  close,  as  shelter-halves  and  blankets  screen  every 
nook  through  which  light  might  pass  to  give  information 
of  human  habitation  to  a  passing  bomber.  Everybody  feels 
tired,  dirty  and  discouraged. 

I  said  to  them,  "You  are  the  glumm.est  bunch  of  Irish 
that  I  ever  saw  on  a  Hallowe'en.  Johnnie  Fechheimer,  you 
are  the  best  Harp  in  this  bunch;  start  them  singing.  Frank 
Smith,  warm  us  up  with  some  coffee,  since  there's  nothing 
better  to  be  had."  So  Pete  Savarese  soon  had  the  cofifee 
boiling  and  the  two  Ganymedes,  Bob  Dillon  and  Charlie 
Lowe,  ministered  to  our  needs.  Pretty  soon  they  were  all 
singing — Major  Anderson,  Kinney,  Mangan,  Fechheimer, 
McDermott,  Flynn,  McCarthy,  O'Donohue,  Joe  McNa- 
mara.  Smith,  John  Schwinn,  even  Flannery,  Scanlon,  and 
myself.  Joe  JMcNamara,  who  is  as  good  a  youth  as  they 
make  them,  and  who  has  done  great  service  during  the 
past  three  weeks  with  his  signal  men,  sang  a  song  that  was 
just  on  the  verge  of  being  naughty,  with  his  handsome  blue 
eyes  twinkling  provokingly  at  me.  Dan  Flynn  knows  all 
the  old  songs  that  our  mothers  used  to  sing,  "Ben  Bolt," 
"You'll  Remember  Me,"  and  all  that  sort  of  thing.  Fech- 
heimer and  LlacNamara  supplied  the  modern  element  in  the 
concert.  But  no  matter  what  it  was,  everybody  joined  in, 
including  the  men  in  the  loft  upstairs  and  in  the  shelter 
tents  outside,  especially  when  it  came  to  songs  in  praise  of 
Good  Little  Old  New  York ;  and  truck  drivers  and  ambu- 
lance men  and  passing  officers  along  the  road  got  first-hand 
information  that  the  New  York  Irish  69th  had  come 
through  their  three  long  weeks  of  fighting  and  hardshij) 
with  their  tails  still  erect. 


LEQE/fD 
rrrra      TraJl     '^~»^  £  nemV  PositfoDS 


SCALE      -I.^O.OOO 


yni>.p-  5u«iJic>r 


/j»r!^If^>«f 


THE  BATTLE  OF  THE  ARGONNE 


295 


296        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

We  had  no  doubt  of  the  success  of  the  2nd  Division.  Ar- 
tillery was  lined  up  hub  to  hub  on  all  the  roads  around 
Exermont,  Fleville  and  Sommerance  and  the  machine  guns 
of  both  divisions  were  to  give  them  a  sustained  preparatory 
barrage.  I  may  add  incidentally  that  the  thorough  prepara- 
tions for  their  attack  were  the  best  justification  for  our 
failure  to  reach  the  last  objective.  We  heard  the  artillery 
hammering  away  through  the  early  morning  and  it  was 
soon  evident  that  the  sturdy  infantry  and  marines  of  the 
2nd  Division  had  carried  the  battle  line  well  towards  the 
north. 

I  started  up  with  Sergeant  Fitzsimmons  on  my  own  sad 
quest  of  looking  for  our  dead  in  the  enemy  wires.  Just 
ahead  of  us  as  we  passed  through  Sommerance  a  German 
shell  lit  on  the  road  right  in  a  party  of  five  German  prisoners 
and  four  American  soldiers.  The  nine  men  lay  scattered 
in  all  directions.  We  ran  up  and  I  found  one  of  ours  with 
both  legs  blown  completely  off  trying  to  pull  himself  up 
with  the  aid  of  a  packing  case.  In  spite  of  his  wounds  he 
gave  not  the  slightest  evidence  of  mental  shock.  While 
Fitzsimmons  ran  for  an  ambulance,  he  told  me  his  name 
was  Conover,  and  that  he  was  a  Catholic,  and  said  the 
prayers  while  I  gave  him  absolution.  He  had  no  idea  his 
legs  were  gone  until  a  soldier  lifted  him  on  a  stretcher, 
when  I  could  see  in  his  eyes  that  he  was  aware  that  his  body 
was  lifting  light.  He  started  to  look  but  I  placed  my  hand 
on  his  chest  and  kept  him  from  seeing.  Three  men  were 
dead  already  and  it  did  not  seem  to  me  as  if  any  one  of 
them  could  live.  One  of  the  Germans  was  an  o;Vicer  who 
cursed  his  fate  that  brought  him  to  this  death  by  the  fire 
of  his  own  guns  after  lasting  through  four  years  of  war. 

When  we  reacl'^ed  our  old  battleground  I  found  that  one 
man  had  gotten  there  before  me  on  the  same  errand  as 
myself.  It  was  Father  Davitt  of  Lenox,  Mass.,  who  had 
been  detached  from  the  32nd  Division  as  Corps  Chaplain. 

On  both  sides  of  the  Sommerance  road  as  it  neared  the 
wire  we  saw  the  bodies  scattered,  still  well  preserved  and 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  297 

recognizable  by  reason  of  the  cool  weather.  Right  around 
the  wire  and  in  the  sunken  road  that  ran  into  it  the  Ger- 
mans had  buried  them.  It  was  a  surprise  to  find  that  even 
now  the  wire  was  absolutely  unbroken  in  any  place.  An 
occasional  shell  had  landed  in  it,  as  was  evidenced  by  the 
holes  made,  but  the  whole  fabric  was  so  well  bound  to- 
gether that  it  simply  jumped  up  and  then  dropped  back  into 
place  again.  The  2nd  Division  had  evidently  been  wise 
enough  to  carry  their  attack  around  it  as  I  found  just  one 
of  their  dead  and  he  was  lying  in  the  chicane  or  passage 
made  by  the  highway  as  it  passed  through  it. 

I  arranged  with  Father  Davitt  to  have  his  detachment  of 
Pioneers  look  after  the  sepulchre  of  our  dead  in  case  the 
Regiment  got  orders  to  move  on,  and  returned  to  maice 
my  report  to  Colonel  Dravo. 

The  3rd  Battalion  got  back  to  our  place  in  the  rear  dur- 
ing the  morning,  having  suffered  some  losses  from  shell 
fire,  amongst  them  being  Jimmy  Fay,  who  had  part  of  his 
foot  blown  off.  Orders  to  take  up  the  advance  were  re- 
ceived on  November  2nd,  our  3rd  Battalion  being  out  of 
the  line  less  than  24  hours. 

The  first  day's  route  laid  dowm  for  us  showed  us  that 
we  were  going  to  take  over  in  the  region  to  the  west  of 
that  in  which  we  had  Ijeen  fighting.  In  the  plans  for  the 
attack  of  the  2nd  Division  they  had  moved  rapidly  towards 
the  NNE.,  leaving  the  Germans  on  their  left  to  wake  up 
and  find  themselves  in  a  salient  between  our  troops  and 
the  northern  extension  of  the  Argonne  Forest.  The  78th 
Division  was  engaged  in  expediting  the  evacuation  of  these 
Germans.  Two  days'  march,  neither  of  them  very  long, 
brought  us  to  Brieulles,  just  north  of  which  we  were  to 
relieve  the  78th.  The  only  dif^culty  about  the  march  was 
for  the  wagons.  Every  outfit  had  lost  half  of  its  animals, 
and  those  that  were  left  were  in  miserable  condition.  The 
artillery  felt  this  hardest,  but  it  made  trouble  for  the  in- 
fantry, too,  in  getting  up  the  supplies  and  the  kitchens. 
The  worn  down  roads  were  frightfully  crowded  with  am- 


298        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

bulances,  trucks,  kitchens,  guns,  caissons,  ration  and  com- 
bat wagons,  headquarters  automobiles ;  and  the  AI.  Ps.  were 
kept  swearing  till  their  voices  gave  out  trying  to  keep  traf- 
fic conditions  tolerable.  When  we  got  to  Brieulles  we  found 
that  the  Germans  were  blowing  up  bridges  and  roads  in 
their  retreat.  Colonel  Dravo,  following  tradition  and  his 
own  generous  instincts  of  being  nice  to  an  old  fellow  like 
me,  had  sent  me  on  with  his  car;  and  Brown  was  carry- 
ing me  rapidly  out  of  Brieulles  towards  the  front  when 
Major  Doyle,  our  Brigade  Adjutant,  stopped  me  and  said 
that  while  it  didn't  matter  much  what  became  of  me,  cars 
were  getting  scarce  and  he  had  decided  objections  to  pre- 
senting what  was  once  a  perfectly  good  car  to  the  Germans. 
I  deduced  from  this  that  the  enemy  were  in  the  next  town 
and  that  I  had  better  stay  where  I  was.  The  regiment  was 
stopped  at  Authe,  to  which  place  I  returned. 

The  villages  which  the  Germans  had  left  had  a  number  of 
civilians,  and  in  accordance  with  the  order  of  the  German 
Commander,  the  Mayors  put  a  white  flag  on  the  church 
steeple  to  warn  us  against  shelling  them.  I  have  never  seen 
a  happier  lot  of  old  people  in  my  life  than  the  French  ci- 
vilians whom  we  were  instrumental  in  saving  after  four 
years  of  captivity.  At  Authe  our  P.  C.  was  in  what  had 
once  been  a  village  inn.  The  proprietress  was  old  and  lit- 
tle and  lively  and  pious.  She  gave  a  warm  reception  to 
M.  I'Aumonier  when  she  heard  that  I  belonged  to  the  Old 
Church,  and  immediately  proceeded  to  make  plans  for  a 
High  ]\Iass  next  Sunday  in  spite  of  my  telling  her  that  we 
would  not  probably  be  there  more  than  one  night.  "I  have 
been  doing  most  of  the  preaching  to  the  people  around  here 
the  last  four  years,"  she  said.  "M.  le  Cure  is  old  and  quiet 
and  he  hasn't  much  to  say;  but  me,  I  talk,  talk,  talk  all  the 
time.  I  tell  these  people  that  God  sent  the  German  Devils 
amongst  them  because  of  their  sins.  I  preach  so  much  that 
they  have  given  me  a  nickname.  Do  you  know  what  they 
call  me?  They  call  me  Madame  Morale.  And  I  preach  to 
the  Germans,  too.    I  tell  them  they  will  all  be  in  Hell  if  they 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  299 

do  not  mend  their  ways."  "What  do  they  say  to  you?" 
"Most  times  they  laugh  and  call  me  Grossmutter,  but  some 
of  them  swear  and  get  mad.  But  I  preach  at  them  just  the 
same.     My  sister  she  does  not  preach,  she  just  prays." 

I  went  up  to  see  the  sister.  They  must  have  been  both 
around  eighty ;  and  she  sat  in  her  chair  looking  absolutely 
like  Whistler's  picture  of  his  mother,  except  that  the  hands 
were  not  idle  in  her  lap,  but  fingered  unceasingly  a  worn 
rosary. 

Madame  Morale's  piety  was  not  limited  to  preaching.  It 
included  hospitality.  We  have  brought  along  some  fresh 
supplies  of  food  for  our  Headquarters  Mess;  and  as  sol- 
diers from  different  outfits  kept  drifting  in  to  the  kitchen 
looking  for  water  and  incidentally  anything  else  they  could 
get,  the  old  lady  dipped  into  our  scanty  stock,  saying,  "Here, 
my  poor  boys,  there  is  much  food  here" — until  nothing  was 
left. 

In  going  into  action  in  this  last  phase  of  the  Argonne 
fight  Lieutenant  Colonel  Charles  Dravo  was  in  command, 
with  Major  Anderson  second  in  command,  Captain  IMerle- 
Smith  (vice  Kelly,  evacuated  with  fever)  commanding  the 
1st  Battalion,  Captain  Henry  A.  Bootz,  in  charge  of  Ander- 
son's Battalion,  and  Major  Reilley  with  the  3rd.  We  re- 
lieved the  78th  Division  at  the  village  of  x\rtaise-le-Vivier. 
Here  the  Germans  had  left  in  such  a  hurry  that  large  stores 
of  flour  and  vegetables  had  been  left  behind.  On  asking 
the  inhabitants  the  reason  for  this  extraordinary  occur- 
rence we  were  answered  by  the  word  " Avians."  In  this 
sector  we  have  absolute  mastery  of  the  air  and  we  see  vast 
flights  of  planes  spread  out  like  wild  ducks  in  V-shaped 
fashion  advancing  over  the  German  lines.  I  almost  sym- 
pathize with  the  poor  Boches,  for  I  certainly  do  not  like 
aerial  bombs. 

The  next  three  days  was  a  foot-race,  each  battalion  tak- 
ing its  turn  in  the  lead  as  the  others  became  exhausted 
They  swept  from  village  to  village,  or  rather  from  hill  to 
hill,  carefully  closing  around  the  villages,  generally  meeting 


300  FATPIER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

with  but  little  resistance,  the  last  of  the  Gennans,  invaria- 
bly a  machine  gun  group,  taking  their  flight  fifteen  minutes 
to  a  half  hour  before  our  men  could  get  up.  Colonel  Dravo 
was  out  in  the  front  with  his  wild  Irish,  while  Anderson  had 
the  equally  important  task  of  trying  to  get  the  kitchens  and 
supplies  through.  Lieutenants  Schwinn,  McDermott,  Good- 
ell,  Henry  and  Bell  and  Sergeant  Scanlan  labored  night  and 
day  to  get  the  kitchens  through,  crossing  muddy  fields  and 
fording  small  streams  because  the  roads  were  everywhere 
destroyed.  Lieutenant  Seidelman  and  Corporal  Malone 
were  busy  putting  up  signs  at  every  corner  to  guide  the  rear 
elements  in  the  right  direction  to  reach  our  swiftly  moving 
advance. 

I  missed  Major  Lawrence,  who  is  generally  very  much 
in  evidence  when  action  is  on,  but  I  discovered  that  he  had 
very  wisely  made  up  his  mind  that  the  main  thing  was  to 
see  that  the  ambulances  found  a  way  to  follow  up  the  In- 
fantry. He  had  plenty  of  willing  doctors  under  him  to 
look  after  any  wounded  men  in  the  field,  but  it  was  evident 
by  the  rate  our  Infantry  was  traveling  that  wounded  men 
would  not  be  evacuated  for  several  days  unless  the  ambu- 
lances got  through.  When  finally  they  were  needed,  he 
had  them  there,  both  for  the  use  of  our  men  and  those  of 
other  outfits  which  had  not  been  so  carefully  provided  for. 

For  two  days  the  advance  was  an  interesting  race.  The 
6th  Division  was  coming  up  the  road  behind  ours,  anxious 
to  get  a  chance  to  relieve  us  and  get  into  line  before  the  war 
would  come  to  an  end.  Each  night  they  thought  that  surely 
by  morning  they  would  catch  up;  but  our  lads,  moving 
freely  across  the  open  country,  always  kept  well  in  advance 
of  troops  that  had  to  move  by  column;  and  each  day  they 
were  still  further  in  the  van.  Our  own  Mess  Sergeants  and 
Cooks  labored  night  and  day  to  get  the  food  forward,  but 
for  two  days  and  more  they,  too,  were  left  behind  in  the 
race.  The  men  in  front  were  not  left  entirely  hungry,  as 
in  every  village  from  which  they  drove  the  enemy  the  in- 
habitants drew  out  all  of  their  scanty  stores  and  served 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  GOl 

them  with  coffee,  vegetables  and  a  little  bread,  with  unlim- 
ited supplies  of  bouquets  and  kisses.  In  spite  of  drawbacks 
it  was  a  nice  war. 

At  10:30  on  the  evening  of  the  6th,  there  came  a  most 
extraordinary  order  from  Corps  through  Division  that  it 
was  imperative  that  Sedan  should  be  captured  before  the 
end  of  the  next  day;  that  if  troops  were  resting  they  should 
be  immediately  aroused  and  sent  on  their  way ;  and  that  the 
city  should  be  taken  if  the  last  officer  and  man  should  drop 
in  his  tracks.  Luckily  for  the  men  it  took  some  time  to  get 
that  order  forward  to  the  line,  as  the  horses  of  Jack  Percy, 
Earl  Pierce  and  young  Underwood  were  fatigued  by  the 
incessant  work,  in  which  their  riders  shared,  of  carrying 
messages  night  and  day.  So  the  kitchens  got  through  and 
the  men  were  fed  before  they  started  out  once  more. 

On  November  7th,  Bootz  with  the  2nd  Battalion  was  in 
the  van.  On  Hill  332  the  Germans  put  up  a  stronger  re- 
sistance than  they  had  hitherto  shown;  and  it  came  at  a 
time  when  our  fire  was  growing  weak  on  account  of  the 
expenditure  of  ammunition,  which  there  was  little  means  of 
replacing.  Bootz  told  Captain  Stout,  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  G  Company,  that  the  hill  must  be  taken,  and  Stout 
advanced  with  thirty-eight  men  of  his  own  company  and  a 
detachment  from  Company  H  to  capture  the  hill.  As  they 
kept  crawling  in  on  the  Germans  the  latter  began  to  waver, 
and  the  Captain  called  on  his  followers  to  advance  upon 
them  with  fixed  bayonets.  With  a  great  cheer  our  fellows 
swarmed  up  the  crest  and  the  daunted  Germans,  after  a 
futile  stand,  grounded  their  gims,  threw  up  their  hands  and 
surrendered.  The  men  whose  names  stand  high  in  the 
Company  annals  for  this  deed  are,  first  of  all,  the  dead: 
John  Danker,  George  Spiegel,  Onefrio  Triggiano  and  Ray- 
mond Hawkins.  Also  the  gallant  captain  and  Lieutenant 
Otto;  First  Sergeant  Meagher,  Sergeants  Martin  Murphy, 
Martin  Shalley,  Irving  Framan,  Denis  Corcoran,  John 
Brogan  and  Francis  Malloy,  the  two  latter  being  wounded ; 
James  Regan,  Thomas  Gallagher,  Hilbert  and  Henry,  Rem- 


802        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

ington,  YoLimans  and  Leavensworth,  and,  to  complete  the 
list,  a  bold  Choctaw  Indian  with  the  martial  name  of  Mc- 
Coy. Sergeant  Patrick  Travers,  of  Company  H,  received 
high  praise  from  everybody.  \\^hile  the  German  resistance 
was  still  determined,  he  went  alone  against  a  machine  gun 
on  the  right  and  captured  it  single-handed,  taking  three 
German  officers  and  four  men. 

The  same  day  B  Company  lost  Sergeant  Ed.  Kramer, 
and  Martin  Gilfoyle;  C  Company,  Frank  Casserly,  Michael 
Golinski,  and  Joseph  Peressine ;  Company  E,  Orliff  Gilbert, 
Samuel  Kelly  and  William  Lambert;  T^^Iachine  Gun  Com- 
pany, William  Gunnell;  and  the  Sanitary  Detachment,  Mi- 
chael Cavanaugh. 

Meanwhile  events  were  happening  which  made  the  order 
to  advance  without  ceasing  seem  more  extraordinary.  Ele- 
ments of  the  1st  Division  appeared  on  our  flank  and  rear. 
They,  too,  had  received  orders  to  the  same  effect  from 
their  Corps  Commander,  and  had  advanced  to  the  left 
across  the  front  of  the  77th  Division,  and  were  taking  pos- 
session of  our  line,  which  was  the  one  leading  straight  to- 
wards Sedan.  They  had  crept  up  around  Bulson  in  the 
morning,  only  to  find  General  MacArthur  and  84th  Brigade 
Headquarters  in  possession  of  the  village.  Elements  of  the 
1 6th  Infantry  now  came  on  Bootz's  hill  and  claimed  it  as 
theirs.  "This  is  my  hill,  and  my  line  of  advance,"  said 
Bootz.  "If  you  say  it's  yours,  show  your  booty.  I  have 
twenty-five  prisoners  and  twelve  machine  guns ;  what  have 
you  got  to  show  for  it?"  And  Bootz  ordered  his  battalion 
to  advance,  leaving  to  the  others  to  do  what  they  would. 

Nobody  blamed  the  ist  Division  for  this  mix-up,  because 
they  certainly  had  orders  the  same  as  ours  to  advance  and 
capture  Sedan.  The  whole  thing  is  a  mystery.  A  staff 
officer  told  me  that  neither  of  us  had  any  right  here,  as 
Sedan  lies  in  the  sector  of  the  French  Division  on  our  left, 
and  considering  what  it  means  to  the  French,  they  are 
certainly  the  ones  who  have  the  best  right  to  capture  it. 

In  this  sector  we  had  a  visit  from  Sergeant  Alexander 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  303 

Wcx)llcott,  who  is  well  known  in  New  York  as  a  dramatic 
critic,  and  who  has  been  assigned  by  G.  H.  Q.  to  the 
duties  of  reporter  for  the  Stars  and  Stripes.  He  is  always 
on  hand  when  there  is  trouble,  and  the  field  of  war  becomes 
a  pleasant  place  for  me  whenever  he  is  there.  We  have 
swapped  stories  and  discussed  men  and  books  in  the  weird- 
est places.  He  is  communicative  rather  than  inquisitive  and 
one  never  thinks  of  him  as  a  reporter,  but  he  gets  all  the 
information  he  wants  and  all  the  more  effectively  because 
there  is  no  appearance  of  seeking  it.  He  can  even  make 
Anderson  talk. 

During  this  period  Anderson  had  been  forging  ahead 
with  his  Headquarters  group,  expecting  to  find  Bootz  in 
Chaumont.  He  entered  that  town  with  a  couple  of  doctors, 
Lieutenant  Rerat,  and  his  liaison  men,  only  to  find  that  they 
were  the  first  to  get  there,  and  the  enemy  had  not  yet  com- 
pletely evacuated  it.  They  were  under  rifle  fire  as  they 
came  along  the  street,  and  had  a  merry  little  sniper's  battle 
before  they  got  possession.  Then  Lieutenant  McCarthy  set 
up  his  one-pound  cannon  on  the  edge  of  the  village,  and  soon 
had  the  German  gunners  putting  for  safety  over  the  hill. 
So  Anderson  captured  a  town  for  himself,  and  for  once  did 
Colonel  Dravo  out  of  the  bouquets  and  kisses.  Though, 
even  here,  Rerat  got  the  cream  of  it. 

We  kept  going  through  that  day,  the  3rd  Battalion  re- 
lieving the  2nd  during  the  night,  and  reaching  on  November 
8th,  the  village  of  Wadelincourt  on  the  heights  of  the 
Meuse,  directly  overlooking  Sedan.  A  patrol  from  Com- 
pany M  with  orders  to  go  down  to  the  Meuse  and  scout 
up  to  the  suburbs  of  Sedan,  got  nearest  of  all  Ameri- 
can troops  to  that  famous  city.  Eighteen  men  started  out, 
of  whom  most  were  wounded,  but  Corporal  John  McLaugh- 
lin, with  two  men,  carried  out  the  mission  and  reported  the 
results  of  the  reconnaissance.  Under  shell  fire  that  night 
Albert  Bieber  and  Carl  Maritz  of  Company  I  were  killed 
and  Lieutenant  Behrendts,  the  Company  Commander,  and 
many  others  were  wounded.   James  P.  Smith  of  Company 


304)  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

M  was  also  killed  and  Sergeant  Lester  Lenhart  of  Com- 
pany E  was  mortally  wounded. 

That  night  our  Division  was  relieved  by  the  40th  French 
Division,  which  from  the  beginning  had  the  right  of  way. 
As  a  matter  of  courtesy  the  French  Division  Commander 
invited  a  company  of  the  165th  and  i66th  to  enter  with  his 
troops  for  the  occupation  of  the  suburbs  of  Sedan.  Com- 
pany D  of  our  regiment  was  selected  for  the  purpose  and 
Lieutenant  Cassidy  had  them  all  ready,  but  through  some 
mix-up  of  orders  they  were  not  called  upon  to  share  in  the 
little  ceremony. 

On  November  8th  we  marched  back  to  Artaise  and  the 
next  day  to  Les  Petites  Armoises ;  on  the  loth,  to  Vaux-en- 
Dieulet.  The  nth  found  us  at  Sivry-les-Buzancy,  where 
we  spent  two  days. 

On  our  way  in  I  got  a  rumor  that  the  Armistice  was 
signed.  I  had  always  believed  that  the  news  of  victory  and 
peace  would  fill  me  with  surging  feelings  of  delight.  But  it 
was  just  the  contrary;  no  doubt  because  the  constraint  I 
had  put  upon  my  natural  feelings  during  the  year  were 
taken  off  by  the  announcement.  I  knew  that  in  New  York 
and  in  every  city  at  home  and  throughout  the  world  men 
were  jubilant  at  the  prospects  of  peace.  But  I  could  think 
of  nothing  except  the  fine  lads  who  had  come  out  with  us 
to  this  war  and  who  are  not  alive  to  enjoy  the  triumph. 
All  day  I  had  a  lonely  and  an  aching  heart.  It  would  be  a 
lesser  thing  to  have  been  killed  myself  than  to  go  back  to 
the  mothers  of  the  dead  who  would  never  more  return. 
Luckily  for  me  my  dear  friend  Chaplain  Nash  came  over 
to  see  me  and  walked  me  for  hours  through  the  desolate 
country,  encouraging  me  to  express  my  every  feeling  un- 
til fatigue  and  the  relief  of  expression  brought  me  back  to 
a  more  normal  mood. 

The  men  had  no  certainty  that  the  rumors  were  true,  and 
discounted  them.  On  November  13th  we  marched  to  Lan- 
dres  et  Saint  Georges  which  we  had  striven  vainly  to  enter 
from  the  other  side  five  weeks  before.     The  village  was 


THE  ARGONNE  OFFENSIVE  305 

almost  completely  demolished  and  our  troops  with  others 
of  the  Division  pitched  their  shelter  tents  on  all  the  hills 
surrounding  the  town.  That  night  official  information  was 
given  of  the  Armistice.  The  men  raided  the  Engineer  and 
Signal  Stores  for  rockets  of  all  descriptions  and  the  whole 
,sky  was  filled  with  lights  which  in  war  would  have  demand- 
ed the  expenditure  of  at  least  a  million  shells.  Bonfires 
were  blazing  all  over  the  hillside  Finic  la  Guerre.  The  war 
was  over. 

My  duties,  like  my  feelings,  still  lay  in  the  past.  With 
men  from  all  the  companies  I  went  round  the  battlefield  to 
pay  as  far  as  I  could  my  last  duties  to  the  dead,  to  record 
•and  in  a  rough  way  to  beautify  their  lonely  graves,  for  I 
knew  that  soon  we  would  leave  this  place  that  their  pres- 
ence hallows,  and  never  look  upon  it  again. 

On  the  15th,  in  accordance  with  Division  orders,  a  for- 
mal muster  was  held.  Our  strength  was  55  officers  and 
1,637  men,  with  8  officers  and  43  men  attached,  1,300 
short  of  the  number  we  had  brought  into  the  Argonne.  Of 
the  survivors,  not  many  more  than  600  were  men  who  had 
left  New  York  with  the  regiment  a  little  over  a  year  ago. 
And  most  of  these  belonged  to  the  Adjutant's  Office,  Bat- 
talion and  Company  Headquarters,  Kitchens,  Band  and 
Supply  Company.  In  the  line  companies,  there  are  about 
twenty-five  rifle  men  to  each  company  who  are  old-timers 
and  nearly  all  of  these  have  wound  stripes  earned  in  earlier 
engagements.  The  great  bulk  of  the  old  regiment  is  in  hos- 
pitals, convalescent  and  casual  camps;  some  of  them  pro- 
moted, some  transferred,  hundreds  of  them  invalided  home, 
a  great  many,  alas!  buried  on  battlefields  or  in  hospital 
cemeteries. 


CHAPTER  X 
WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION 

On  the  1 6th  we  took  to  the  road  again,  happy  at  the 
thought  that  the  Rainbow  Division  had  received  the  honor 
of  being  chosen  as  part  of  the  Army  of  Occupation.  At 
the  end  of  the  first  day's  march  our  Headquarters  were  at 
Baalon.  Crossing  the  Meuse  at  Duns  sur  Meuse  I  ran  into 
Hogstrom  and  Mullen  of  Company  C,  whom  I  had  thought 
dead,  but  who  had  been  captured  by  the  Germans  in  the 
wire  on  the  night  of  October  14th.  They  had  been  well 
used,  they  said,  except  for  the  fact  that  there  was  little  to 
eat.  We  crossed  the  Belgian  frontier  on  the  morning  of 
November  21st  at  the  village  of  Fagny,  which  was  all  dec- 
orated up  like  Old  Home  Day.  The  village  band — a  nonde- 
script outfit — played  us  into  town.  The  people  had  made 
out  of  dress  material  American  flags,  or  rather  well-meant 
attempts  at  them,  as  five  or  six  stripes  and  a  dozen  stars 
was  about  as  near  as  they  could  come  to  it.  After  crossing 
the  border  we  received  a  new  commanding  officer  in  the 
person  of  Colonel  Charles  R.  Howland,  a  regular  army 
man  who  had  a  regiment  in  the  86th  Division.  When  that 
Division  was  broken  up  for  replacement  purposes,  he  was 
assigned  to  fill  the  vacancy  in  ours.  About  the  same  time 
Colonel  Henry  J.  Reilly,  who  had  been  ably  handling  our 
brigade  during  the  past  five  weeks,  was  superseded  by 
General  F.  M.  Caldwell,  U.  S.  A.  Colonel  Reilly  returned 
to  the  command  of  the  149th  F.  A. 

As  we  crossed  Belgium  at  its  southmost  tip,  we  made 
only  a  two  days'  job  of  it,  headquarters  being  at  Ste.  Marie 
on  November  21st  and  at  Thiaumont  November  22nd.    My 

306 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        SOT 

chief  impressions  were  of  a  clean,  orderly,  prosperous  coun- 
try as  compared  with  the  ruined  parts  of  France,  and  a 
very  intelligent  cure  in  whose  house  I  stopped  at  Ste.  Marie. 
When  we  passed  the  borders  of  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Lux- 
embourg at  Oberpollen  on  the  22nd  there  were  no  brass 
bands  to  greet  us.  The  inhabitants  were  civil  and  pleasant 
but  they  adopted  a  correct  attitude  towards  us  as  foreigners 
crossing  through  their  territory.  Most  of  the  regiment  was 
billetted,  and  rather  well  accommodated,  at  Useldingen,  a 
comfortable  town  with  a  fine  new  parish  church.  Here  we 
stayed  until  the  1st  of  December,  till  arrangements  could 
be  made  for  our  passage  into  Germany.  We  are  part  of  the 
Third  Army  now,  and  the  Third  Army  has  been  organized 
on  a  shoestring.  It  cannot  be  said  to  be  functioning  very 
well,  and  the  system  of  supplies  and  equipment  is  not  in 
good  shape.  We  have  gotten  a  good  deal  of  equipment — 
and  we  never  needed  it  worse  than  after  leaving  the  Ar- 
gonne — but  there  are  many  old  and  ill-fitting  shoes,  which 
makes  hiking  a  torture  for  the  men. 

The  principal  sight  of  Useldingen  is  the  ruins  of  a  very 
extensive  medieval  castle,  standing  on  an  elevation  in  the 
middle  of  the  town.  I  wandered  through  it  with  Vandy 
Ward  and  Read  of  H.  O.  Co.,  trying  with  the  aid  of  the 
Cure  to  get  an  idea  of  its  original  plan  and  the  sort  of 
life  that  was  led  there  by  other  soldiers  a  thousand  years 
ago. 

Thanksgiving  Day  came  round  while  we  were  here  and 
everybody  worked  to  celebrate  it  in  proper  fashion.  There 
is  a  fair  supply  of  food  in  the  country,  though  one  has  to 
pay  high  prices  for  it,  all  the  higher  because  the  national 
currency  is  in  marks  and  the  people  demand  the  old  rate  of 
100  francs  for  80  marks.  But,  like  all  Americans,  we  want 
what  we  want  when  we  want  it,  so  the  canny  Luxembour- 
geois  get  what  they  ask  for.  Our  religious  services  were  in 
thanksgiving  for  peace.  In  the  church  we  had  a  solemn 
high  mass  and  Te  Deum  and  I  preached,  Father  Hanley 
singing  tlie  Mass.    As  Chaplain  Holmes  had  not  yet  re- 


308  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

turned,  I  unfrocked  myself  of  my  papistical  robes  and 
went  out  to  hold  general  services  in  the  romantic  court- 
yard of  the  old  Schloss,  using  a  breach  in  the  fortifications 
as  a  pulpit.  My  friend  Chaplain  Halliday  of  the  Ohios 
came  along  and,  added  a  few  words  in  his  earnest,  sensible 
style. 

There  is  great  joy  in  the  regiment,  for  Captain  Hurley 
is  back.  He  looks  thin  and  none  too  fit,  and  I  know  he 
is  with  us,  not  because  the  hospital  authorities  thought  that 
he  should  be,  but  through  his  own  strong  desire  and  plead- 
ing eloquence.  We  had  a  visit  from  Donovan  also — on 
crutches.  The  Provost  Marshal  General  had  him  trans- 
ferred to  his  department  while  he  was  in  the  hospital,  and 
now  he  is  touring  the  country  in  a  car,  performing  his  new 
services.  It  is  not  a  bad  sort  of  a  job  at  all — with  head- 
quarters in  Paris,  and  a  chance  to  tour  all  over  France  in  a 
first-class  automobile,  with  the  best  billets  and  the  best  food 
wherever  he  goes — but  not  for  Donovan.  No  one  of  our 
enlisted  men  marooned  in  a  casual  camp  with  a  lot  of  abso- 
lute strangers  ever  uttered  with  greater  longing  and  pathos 
the  formula,  "I  want  to  be  back  with  my  old  outfit."  For 
Donovan's  case  I  shall  omit  the  pathos.  When  that  young 
man  wants  anything  very  bad  he  gets  it.  I  expect  to  see 
him  back  on  duty  with  us  in  a  very,  very  brief  time. 

My  mail  is  a  very  full  one  these  days.  All  of  our  old- 
timers  back  in  hospitals  and  camps  are  clamoring  to  return 
to  the  regiment,  and  they  think  that  if  I  only  speak  to 
somebody,  a  word  from  me  will  manage  it.  I  went  to 
]\'lersch  to  see  my  ever  kind  friend.  Colonel  Hughes,  our 
Divisional  Chief  of  Staff,  to  inquire  if  some  general  ar- 
rangement could  not  be  made  for  the  return  of  all  men  in 
combat  divisions  who  had  been  evacuated  from  the  line 
through  wounds  or  sickness.  I  found  that  he  was  doing 
everything  that  he  possibly  could  to  get  our  Rainbow  fel- 
lows back,  and  he  promised  to  work  for  an  order  along 
the  lines  I  proposed. 

The  regiment  marched  on  the  ist  of  December,  Head- 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        309 

quarters  passing  the  night' at  ^lersch;  and  on  December 
2nd  to  WaldbilHg.  December  3rd  was  the  day  on  which  we 
finally  accomplished  what  we  had  started  out  to  do — make 
our  invasion  of  Germany.  We  crossed  the  border  by  a 
bridge  over  the  Sauer  river  into  the  village  of  Bollendorf. 
Captain  John  Mangan,  who  had  come  to  the  regiment  on 
business  from  the  2nd  Army,  George  Boothby  of  the  New 
York  World  and  myself  crossed  the  bridge  ahead  of  the 
others,  very  curious  to  see  what  reception  we  would  get  in 
the  land  of  the  enemy.  The  first  indication  of  the  sort  of 
reception  we  were  to  have  came  from  an  invitation  from 
an  old  farmer  and  his  wife  whose  house  stood  at  the  end  of 
the  bridge  to  step  inside  and  have  a  glass  of  schnapps; 
when  we  prudently  declined  this,  we  were  ofifered  apples, 
but  not  being  there  as  visitors,  we  felt  it  proper  to  say  no. 
The  proffered  kindnesses  were  inspired  partly  no  doubt  by 
a  desire  to  propitiate,  but  nobody  could  doubt  that  it  was 
largely  the  decent  impulse  of  a  nice  old  couple.  We  re- 
joined the  regiment  for  the  march  across. 

The  column  came  down  along  the  river,  the  band  in  front 
playing  "The  Yanks  Are  Coming"  and,  as  we  turned  to 
cross  the  bridge,  the  lively  regimental  tune  of  "Garry 
Owen."  In  front  of  us,  above  the  German  hill,  there  was 
a  beautiful  rainbow.  As  we  marched  triumphantly  onto 
German  soil,  nothing  more  hostile  greeted  us  than  the  click 
of  a  moving-picture  camera.  Every  soldier  in  the  line  was 
glowing  with  happiness  except  myself,  perhaps.  On  occa- 
sions like  this  of  glory  and  excitement  my  mind  has  a  habit 
of  going  back  to  the  lads  that  are  gone. 

We  marched,  with,  advance  and  rear  guards,  as  if  enter- 
ing a  hostile  country,  our  first  stop  being  at  Holsthum.  We 
had  hopes  that  our  line  of  march  would  take  us.  down  the 
Moselle  Valley  towards  Coblenz,  but  instead  we  struck  ofif 
to  the  north  and  northeast,  through  the  rough  Eiffel  coun- 
try, along  mountain  roads  that  were  badly  worn  down  by 
the  traffic  of  war.  Our  Headquarters  for  December  5th, 
6th,  7th,  8th  and  9th  were  Blickendorf,  Wallerschein,  Hille- 


310  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

sheim  (a  romantic  spot),  Weisbaum  and,  after  a  desperate 
hike,  Wershofen. 

The  greatest  surprise  of  our  first  week  in  Germany  was 
the  attitude  of  the  people  towards  us.  We  had  expected  to 
be  in  for  an  unpleasant  experience,  and  I  have  no  doubt  that 
some  of  our  fellows  had  a  picture  of  themselves  moving 
around  in  German  villages  with  loaded  rifle  and  fixed  bayo- 
net ready  to  repel  treacherous  attacks.  We  were  received 
very  peacefully,  one  might  almost  say,  cordially.  Farm- 
ers in  the  fields  would  go  out  of  the  way  to  put  us  on  the 
right  road,  children  in  the  villages  were  as  friendly  and 
curious  as  youngsters  at  home;  the  women  lent  their  uten- 
sils and  often  helped  soldiers  with  their  cooking,  even  of- 
fering stuff  from  their  small  stores  when  the  hungry  men 
arrived  far  ahead  of  their  kitchens.  There  were  many  Ger- 
man soldiers  in  these  towns  still  wearing  the  uniform  (they 
would  be  naked  otherwise),  and  they,  too,  were  interested, 
curious,  almost  friendly.  Some  of  them  had  been  against 
us  in  battle,  and  with  the  spirit  of  veterans  in  all  times  and 
places,  they  struck  up  conversation  with  our  men,  fighting 
the  battles  over  again  and  swapping  lies.  I  talked  with  the 
priests  in  the  different  towns — one  of  them  a  Chaplain  just 
returned  from  the  Eastern  front.  Like  all  the  others  that 
we  meet,  they  say  that  their  country  had  the  French  and 
British  licked  if  we  had  stayed  out;  to  which  I  make  the 
very  obvious  retort  that  they  had  followed  a  very  foolish 
policy  when  they  dragged  us  in. 

But  it  is  only  occasionally  that  this  note  is  struck,  the 
attitude  of  most  people  being  that  the  war  is  over  and 
they  are  glad  of  it.  In  fact,  a  surprising  number  have 
wanted  to  have  it  over  for  a  considerable  time  past.  No 
doubt  the  historical  background  of  life  in  these  countries 
makes  them  able  to  take  defeat  with  more  philosophy  than 
we  could  ever  muster  up  if  foreign  troops  were  to  occupy 
our  country.  As  for  us,  we  are  here  in  the  role  of  victors, 
and  our  soldiers  are  willing  to  go  half  way  and  accept  the 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        311 

attitude  that  for  them  also  (unless  somebody  wants  to  start 
something)  the  war  is  a  past  issue. 

CiviHans  hold  grudges,  but  soldiers  do  not;  at  least  the 
soldiers  who  do  the  actual  fighting.  The  civilian  mind  is 
fed  up  on  all  sorts  of  stories  about  atrocities,  most  of  which 
I  believe  are  fabricated  to  arouse  decent  human  beings  up 
to  the  point  of  approving  of  this  rotten  business  of  war. 
We  fought  the  Germans  two  long  tricks  in  the  trenches  and 
in  five  pitched  battles  and  they  never  did  anything  to  us  that 
we  did  not  try  to  do  to  them.  And  we  played  the  game 
as  fairly  as  it  can  be  played.  We  followed  their  retreat 
through  three  sectors,  in  two  of  which  they  had  been  for 
years,  and  we  never  witnessed  at  first  hand  any  of  the 
atrocities  we  read  about.  A  church  burned  at  St.  Benoit 
without  any  good  military  reason  that  I  could  see ;  the  shell- 
ing of  the  hospital  in  Villers  sur  Fere,  in  which  case  there 
was  no  way  for  them  to  know  it  was  a  hospital ;  some  valu- 
ables piled  up  for  carrying  away — that  is  the  whole  indict- 
ment. But  no  crucified  soldiers,  no  babies  with  their  hands 
cut  off,  no  girls  outraged  in  trenches,  to  provoke  our  sol- 
diers to  rush  on  to  death  to  rescue  them,  no  poisoned  food 
or  wells  (except  of  course  through  gas  shells)  no  women 
chained  to  machine  guns,  and  no  prisoners  playing  treach- 
ery. 

In  the  invaded  territory  of  France  we  found  plenty  of 
evidence  of  harsh  military  occupation.  It  was  bad  at  its 
best,  and  some  local  commanders  made  it  more  intolerable. 
The  people  were  taxed  without  much  to  show  for  their 
money,  forced  to  work  for  little  or  no  pay,  rationed  rather 
slenderly  though  with  enough  to  sustain  strength,  had  to 
put  up  with  requisitions  of  animals,  houses  and  some  minor 
property,  such  as  linen  and  copper  down  to  bedsheets  and 
the  brass  knobs  off  the  stoves.  They  were  also  dragooned 
about  to  various  places  to  do  work  for  their  conquerors. 
I  heard  plenty  of  tales  in  Eastern  France  and  Belgium  of 
terrible  experiences  and  unwarranted  executions  during  the 
first  couple  of  weeks  of  the  German  occupation  from  wit- 


312        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

nesses  whose  word  I  believe  absolutely.  After  the  civilians 
were  thoroughly  cowed  these  atrocities  ceased,  though 
many  of  the  lesser  hardships  of  military  occupation  per- 
severed during  the  four  years. 

Most  of  the  French  and  Belgians  told  me  (though  some 
voiced  suspicions  to  the  contrary)  that  the  Germans  saw 
to  it  strictly  that  none  of  their  soldiers  took  the  relief  goods 
sent  from  America.  One  old  lady  told  me  that  she  had  proof 
that  all  Germans  were  robbers;  for  they  give  her  some 
patched  clothing  as  coming  from  America  and  she  knew 
that  nobody  in  America  would  send  over  such  stuff  as  that. 
It  was  hard  to  have  to  choose  between  being  just  and  being 
loyal  American.  I  refuse  to  state  which  attitude  I  took, 
but  I  am  afraid  that  the  dear  old  lady  still  thinks  she 
has  an  argument  to  prove  that  the  Boches  are  robbers. 

At  any  rate,  the  older  griefs  of  these  people  are  for  the 
soldiers  who  have  come  through  an  intense  war  experience, 
echoes  of  "Old  unhappy  far-off  things,  and  battles  long 
ago."  They  judge  the  German  soldier  by  their  own  ex- 
perience and  by  soldier  standards.  They  do  not  fear  him, 
they  do  not  hate  him,  they  do  not  depise  him  either.  They 
respected  him  when  he  put  up  a  good  fight  or  made  a  clean 
getaway,  and  that  was  most  of  the  time.  It  was  a  rare 
thing  to  hear  a  soldier  in  a  combat  division  talk  about 
"Huns."  It  was  always  the  "Heinies,"  the  "Jerries,"  the 
"Boches"  or,  simply  the  "Germans." 

The  fine  spirit  on  the  part  of  our  troops  was  much  better, 
even  for  military  value,  than  hatred  would  have  been.  I 
cannot  see  that  deep  bitterness  could  have  made  them  any 
bolder.  It  would  only  have  made  them  less  efficient.  And 
the  spirit  is  admirable  in  itself. 

At  any  rate  we  were  convinced  from  the  beginning  that 
our  experiences  as  part  of  the  army  of  occupation  were 
not  going  to  be  as  unpleasant  as  we  expected. 

Aside  from  the  attitude  of  the  people  the  things  that 
strike  us  most  are  two.  Putting  the  two  into  one,  it  is 
the  number  and  the  fatness  of  the  children.    There  are  few 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        313 

children  on  the  streets  in  French  villages ;  German  villages 
swarm  with  youngsters.  Our  coming  is  like  circus  clay  and 
they  are  all  out,  especially  the  boys.  Boys  everywhere !  And 
such  sturdy  little  towheads — chubby  is  the  word  for  the 
smaller  ones.  I  do  not  know  about  the  rest  of  Germany, 
but  the  Rhineland  is  certainly  not  starved.  Perhaps,  as  in 
Belgium,  it  is  the  townspeople  who  do  the  suffering.  These 
children  wear  patched  clothing,  but  the  clothing  covers 
rounded  bodies.  We  find  it  easy  to  purchase  meals  at  rates 
that  are  astoundingly  reasonable  after  our  experience  in 
other  European  countries.  Germany  lacks  many  things — 
edible  bread,  good  beer,  real  coffee,  kerosene,  rubber,  oil, 
soap  and  fats;  and  in  the  cities,  no  doubt,  meat  and  milk. 
The  people  here  say  that  they  eat  little  meat,  their  susten- 
ance being  largely  vegetable  and  based  on  the  foundation  of 
the  potato.   It  scores  another  triumph  for  the  potato. 

But  I  would  like  to  know  how  they  fatten  the  children. 
With  good  advertising  a  man  could  make  a  fortune  on  it 
at  home.  German  breakfast  food  for  boys,  with  pictures 
of  chubby  young  rascals  playing  around  American  soldiers. 
But  perhaps  Germans  are  plump  by  nature  or  divine  decree, 
and  it  would  not  work  wnth  lantern- jawed  Yanks  like  our- 
selves. 

During  this  period  Lieutenant  Colonel  Donovan  returned 
to  duty  with  us  by  direct  orders  of  General  Headquarters, 
Lieutenant  Dravo  going  back  to  his  duties  as  Division  Ma- 
chine Gun  Officer,  thus  being  still  near  enough  to  us  to  keep 
up  the  ties  of  friendship  which  he  had  established  in  the 
Regiment.  We  remained  in  Wershofen  and  surrounding 
villages  for  five  days,  during  which  time  the  equipment 
was  gone  over,  animals  rested  and  some  attempt  made  to 
patch  up  the  shoes  of  the  men,  which  had  been  worn  to 
nothing  by  hiking  with  heavy  packs  on  rough  roads.  On 
December  14th,  w^e  marched  through  the  picturesque  valley 
of  the  Ahr  river  over  a  good  road  to  Altenahr,  the  scenery 
of  which  looks  as  if  it  had  been  arranged  by  some  artistic 
stage  manager  with  an  eye  to  picturesque  eft'ect.    It  is  a 


SU  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Slimmer  resort  country  and  we  had  the  advantage  of  good 
hotels  for  billets.  On  December  1 5th,  we  marched  through 
Ahrweiler,  an  old  w^alled  town  which  was  to  be  our  Di- 
vision Headquarters,  and  Neuenahr,  a  modern  summer  re- 
sort place  with  good  roads,  commodious  hotels  and  attrac- 
tive shop  windows,  and  thence  to  the  Rhine,  where,  turn- 
ing north  about  two  kilometers,  we  entered  the  most  pleas- 
ant and  excellent  town  of  Remagen-am-Rhein,  which  was 
to  be  our  home  for  the  next  three  or  four  months. 

Remagen  was  already  in  existence  in  Roman  days.  It  is 
a  charming  well-built  place  of  3,500  inhabitants,  with  a 
large  parish  church  and  also  an  Evangelical  church  and  a 
synagogue.  In  addition,  there  is  on  the  hillside  a  striking 
pilgrimage  church  attended  by  Franciscan  Friars  and  dedi- 
cated to  St.  Apollinaris,  with  the  Stations  of  the  Cross 
built  on  the  roadway  leading  up  to  it.  The  much  adver- 
tised bottled  waters  which  flow  from  a  source  near  Neu' 
enahr  get  their  name  from  this  shrine.  Remagen  has  also 
a  large  convent,  Annacloster,  a  hospital  and  a  town  hall, 
in  front  of  which  our  daily  guard  mounts  are  held. 

I  am  afraid,  however,  that  these  edifices  for  religious  and 
municipal  uses  made  less  immediate  appeal  to  our  fellows 
than  the  fact  that  the  town  possessed  a  number  of  large  and 
commodious  hotels,  some  of  them  ample  for  a  whole  com- 
pany. We  immediately  took  possession  of  these  as  w^ell  as 
of  stores,  beer-gardens  and  extra  rooms  in  private  houses ; 
the  principle  being  that  every  soldier  of  ours  should  have 
a  bed  to  sleep  in,  even  if  the  German  adult  males  had  to  go 
without.  Donovan  and  I  went  on  ahead  to  billet  for  Head- 
quarters. We  called  on  the  Biirgermeister,  a  kindly,  gentle- 
manly, educated  man,  who  was  anxious  to  do  everything  to 
make  our  stay  in  town  a  harmonious  one.  His  assistant,  an 
agreeable  young  man  who  had  been  in  America  for  a  couple 
of  years  and  had  every  intention  of  going  back,  came  along 
with  us  on  our  tour.  We  had  our  pick  of  two  or  three 
modern  villas  of  grandiose  type  north  of    the  town  on  the 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION         315 

hillside,  the  only  difficulty  about  them  being  that  they  were 
a  little  too  far  away. 

At  first  two  of  our  battalions  were  placed  in  mountain 
villages  to  the  west,  but  after  a  week  or  so  we  had  every- 
body accommodated  in  Remagen.  I  settled  down  with  my 
gallant  followers,  Halligan  and  McLaughlin,  in  the  house 
of  the  Biirgermeister,  which  faced  on  the  river  just  north  of 
the  parish  Church,  My  German  is  a  very  sad  affair,  but 
he  speaks  French  and  his  wife  English.  They  have  three 
nice  children,  the  oldest  about  twelve.  I  keep  my  relations 
with  the  parents  as  official  as  is  possible,  when  one  is  dealing 
with  gentlefolks,  but  if  I  am  expected  to  avoid  fraternizing 
with  the  youngsters,  they  will  have  to  lock  me  up  or  shoot 
me.  I  had  a  conference  with  the  Parish  Priest,  a  sturdy 
personality  who  has  his  flock  in  good  control,  at  my  house 
the  other  day  and  we  were  talking  four  languages  at  once 
— German,  French,  English  and  Latin.  But  I  worked  out 
my  plans  for  a  Christmas  celebration. 

Christmas  Mass  on  the  Rhine!  In  1916,  our  midnight 
mass  was  under  the  open  sky  along  the  Rio  Grande;  in 
1 91 7,  in  the  old  medieval  church  at  Grand  in  the  Vosges; 
and  now,  thank  Heaven,  in  this  year  of  grace,  1918,  we 
celebrated  it  peacefully  and  triumphantly  in  the  country 
with  which  we  had  been  at  war.  Attendance  was  of  course 
voluntary,  but  I  think  the  whole  regiment  marched  to  the 
service  with  the  band  preceding  them  playing  "Onward 
Christian  Soldiers"  and  "Adeste  Fideles."  We  took  full 
possession  of  the  Church,  though  many  of  the  townsfolk 
came  in,  and  when  at  the  end,  our  men  sang  the  hymn  of 
Thanksgiving,  "Holy  God,  we  praise  Thy  name"  the  Ger- 
mans swelled  our  chorus  in  their  own  language  "Grosser 
Gott  wir  loben  Dich."  I  preached  on  the  theme  "Can  the 
war  be  ascribed  to  a  failure  on  the  part  of  Christianity?" 
I  have  been  often  irritated  by  ideas  on  this  subject  coming 
from  leaders  of  thought  w^ho  have  given  little  place  or  op- 
portunity to  Christianity  in  their  lives  or  projects.  As 
Chesterton  says :  "Christianity  has  not  been  tried  out  and 


316  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

found  wanting;  Christianity  has  been  tried — a  little — and 
found  difficult."  Father  Hanley  sang  the  Mass,  the  Guard 
of  Honor  with  the  Colors  being  from  Company  K,  with 
Captain  Hurley  in  charge. 

For  the  Company  dinners  I  was  able  to  supply  ample 
funds  through  the  never-ceasing  generosity  of  our  Board 
of  Trustees  in  New  York  City,  and  funds  also  placed  at  my 
disposal  which  were  sent  by  Mrs.  Barend  Van  Gerbig 
through  the  Veteran  Corps  of  the  69th  New  York.  But 
in  their  purchase  of  food,  the  wily  mess  sergeants  found  that 
soap  was  a  better  medium  of  exchange  than  money. 

During  January  and  February  the  men  were  kept  busy 
during  the  day  in  field  training,  infantry  drill,  range  prac- 
tice and  athletics.  Particular  attention  was  paid  to  smart- 
ness of  appearance  and  punctiliousness  in  soldierly  bearing 
and  courtesy.  The  weather  was  mild  though  often  rainy. 
Coal  was  not  too  hard  to  procure  and  the  billets  were  kept 
fairly  comfortable.  The  regiment  being  all  in  one  town 
there  was  a  fine  soldier  atmosphere  in  the  place.  The 
townspeople  are  a  kindly  decent  sort,  but  our  fellows  have 
enough  society  in  themsleves  and  there  is  little  fraterniza- 
tion, and  none  that  is  a  source  of  any  danger — ^there  is 
more  chance  of  our  making  them  American  in  ideas  than 
of  their  making  us  German. 

The  Welfare  Societies  are  on  the  job  with  good  accom- 
modations. In  the  "Y"  we  have  still  Jewett  and  the  ever 
faithful  Pritchard  and  two  or  three  devoted  ladies,  one  of 
whom  is  Miss  Dearing,  a  sister  of  Harry  Dearing  who  w^as 
killed  in  the  Argonne.  Jim  O'Hara  of  the  K.  of  C.  got 
the  Parish  Priest  to  give  up  his  Jugendheim,  a  new  building 
with  large  hall,  bowling  alleys,  all  the  German  Verein  sort 
of  thing.  There  is  no  lack  of  places  to  go  or  ways  to  spend 
an  evening.  Lieutenant  Fechheimer  took  charge  of  ath- 
letics and  we  had  brigade  contests,  and  also  with  the  Cana- 
dians, who  were  just  to  the  left  of  the  Ohios. 

The  3rd  Battalion  has  lost  the  service  of  Mr.  Kelly  of 
the  "Y."   When  I  first  knew  Mr.  Kelly  of  the  "Y"  he  was 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        31T 

Corporal  Kelly  of  Company  I,  69th  Regiment,  at  McAlIen, 
Texas,  and  was  sometimes  known,  Irish  fashon,  as  "Kelly 
die  Lepper,"  as  he  was  a  famous  runner.  His  eyes  were 
not  as  good  as  his  legs,  so  he  was  turned  down  for  re- 
enlistment.  Being  determined  to  have  a  part  in  the  war  he 
got  the  "Y"  to  send  him  over  as  an  athletic  instructor  and 
finally  worked  his  way  up  to  our  regiment  and  was  at- 
tached to  the  3rd  Battalion  which  includes  his  own  com- 
pany. The  assignment  was  more  to  the  advantage  of  the 
3rd  Battalion  than  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  for  Kelly  gave  away 
gratis  everything  he  could  wheedle,  bully,  or  steal  from  the 
"Y"  depot  officials.  When  we  reached  the  Rhine,  things 
were  too  quiet  for  Kelly  and  he  started  off  to  visit  his  native 
town  in  Ireland.  If  I  ever  hear  that  somebody  has  gotten 
stores  from  the  police  barracks  to  equip  the  Sein  Feiners, 
I  shall  know  that  Kelly  the  Lepper  is  on  the  job. 

My  own  life  is  an  altogether  pleasant  one.  I  have  for 
my  office  a  well  furnished  parlor  on  the  ground  floor  of  the 
Biirgermeister's  house  where  I  spend  my  mornings  with  Bill 
Halligan,  mainly  at  the  task  of  writing  letters  to  soldiers 
who  want  to  get  back  and  to  folks  at  home  who  ask  news 
of  their  dear  ones,  living  or  dead.  In  the  afternoons  I  float 
lazily  around  amongst  the  companies,  just  chatting  and 
gossiping,  and  getting  in  a  good  deal  of  my  work  in  my 
own  way,  sort  of  incidentally  and  on  the  side;  or  I  drop  In 
at  headquarters  and  bother  Captain  Dick  Allen  and  Jansen 
and  Ed  Farrell  of  the  Personnel  Department  for  correct 
data  for  my  diary,  or  Ted  Ranscht  and  Clarke  for  maps. 
Or  I  look  in  on  the  juvenile  pro-consuls  Springer  and  Allen 
to  smile  at  the  air  of  easy  mastery  with  which  they  boss  the 
German  civilians  into  observing  American  Military  Com- 
mands. My  nights  I  spend  at  the  building  of  the  "Y"  or 
K.  of  C.  amongst  the  men,  or  at  home,  receiving  numerous 
guests  with  a  world  of  topics  to  discuss.  It  is  an  agreeable 
kind  of  existence,  with  no  urgent  duties  except  correspond- 
ence, and  with  the  satisfaction  of  performing  a  not  unim- 
portant service  without  any  feeling  of  labor,  but  merely  by 


318  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

kindly  and  friendly  intercourse.  My  orderly,  "Little  Mac," 
is  having  the  time  of  his  life.  If  I  only  had  a  car  for  him 
to  drive  me  around  in,  as  Tom  Gowdy  did  in  Texas,  he 
would  never  want  to  go  home  to  the  Bronx. 

Father  Hanley  was  made  director  of  amusements  and 
was  kept  busy  providing  entertainment  five  nights  a  week 
from  our  own  and  other  Divisions  for  the  two  large  halls 
conducted  by  the  Y.  M.  C,  A.  and  the  K.  of  C,  a  task  which 
he  accomplished  as  he  does  everything — to  complete  satis- 
faction. 

One  thing  that  astonished  everybody  in  this  New  York 
regiment  was  the  number  of  illiterates  amongst  replace- 
ments from  the  Southern  States.  We  had  two  hundred 
men  who  could  not  sign  their  names  to  the  pay-roll.  A 
strong  movement  was  started  throughout  the  American 
Expeditionary  Forces  after  the  Armistice  to  teach  such  men 
to  read  and  write,  and  the  simplest  problems  in  arithmetic^ 
as  well  as  to  give  a  better  knowledge  of  English  to  foreign 
born  soldiers.  In  our  regiment  this  task  was  confided  to 
Chaplain  Holmes,  who  went  at  it  with  his  usual  devotion  to 
duty  and  attention  to  details,  so  that  Chaplain  Nash  who 
was  Divisional  School  Officer  told  me  that  the  educational 
work  in  the  165th  was  by  far  the  best  in  the  Division. 

I  had  many  examples  of  the  need  of  schooling  for  certain 
of  the  men.  Many  of  our  recent  replacements  had  been 
kept  going  from  place  to  place  and  had  not  received  pay 
in  months.  Whenever  I  heard  of  such  cases  I  advanced 
them  money  from  our  Trustee's  Fund.  One  evening  three 
of  our  old-timers  came  to  my  billet  to  borrow  some  money 
to  have  a  little  party,  but  I  had  to  tell  them  that  my  stock 
of  francs  was  cleaned  out.  Just  then  a  fine  big  simple  fel- 
low from  the  Tennessee  mountains  came  in-  to  return  the 
money  I  had  loaned  him.  "How  much  do  you  owe  me?" 
I  asked.  "Thirty-seven  francs.  "All  right,  hand  it  over  to 
these  fellows  here."  "Well,  I  reckon  I'd  rather  pay  you." 
After  a  certain  amount  of  joking  about  it,  it  dawned  upon 
my  slow  intelligence  that  the  poor  fellow  was  embarrassed 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION         319 

by  not  being  able  to  count  money,  so  I  took  him  into 
another  room  and  tried  to  teach  him  how  much  change  he 
should  have  out  of  a  fifty  franc  note. 

The  efforts  of  our  generous  friends  in  New  York  in 
supplying  funds  were  much  appreciated  by  the  whole  regi- 
ment. We  had  been  in  line  for  months  and  the  men  were 
seldom  paid.  Even  when  pay-day  came  those  who  were 
absent  in  hospital,  or  those  who  had  been  absent  when  the 
pay-roll  was  signed,  got  nothing.  The  funds  were  left 
absolutely  at  my  disposal,  and  I  knew  from  the  calibre  of 
our  Trustees  that  it  was  their  wish  that  they  should  be  dis- 
bursed in  a  generous  spirit.  Many  of  our  bright  sergeants 
were  started  off  to  Officer's  School  without  a  sou  in  their 
pockets.  I  believed  that  our  New  York  backers  would  like 
to  have  the  best  men  of  our  regiment  able  to  hold  up  their 
heads  in  any  crowd,  so  I  saw  that  every  one  of  them  had 
fifty  or  a  hundred  francs  in  his  pocket  before  starting. 
When  I  could  be  sure  of  addresses,  I  sent  money  to  men 
in  hospitals  and  in  casual  camps.  While  the  regiment  was 
in  line  money  was  no  use  to  anybody,  as  there  was  ab- 
solutely nothing  to  buy,  not  even  an  egg  or  a  glass  of  wine, 
but  here  in  Germany,  with  shops  and  eating  houses  open, 
my  cash  was  a  real  boon,  and  I  did  not  hesitate  to  dis- 
burse it. 

Just  after  the  armistice,  with  the  prospect  that  leaves 
might  at  last  be  granted,  I  sent  to  our  trustees  a  bold  re- 
quest for  $20,000.00,  to  guarantee  the  men  a  real  holiday. 
When  the  permissions  for  leaves  came  I  found  that  in  most 
cases  this  money  was  not  needed,  as  the  long  deferred  pay 
gave  most  of  the  men  sufficient  money  of  their  own.  So  I 
devoted  a  generous  am.ount  of  it  to  help  finance  the  com- 
pany dinners  which  were  gotten  up  on  a  metropolitan  scale 
in  the  hotels  of  Remagen.  These  were  joyous  affairs — 
feasts  of  song  and  story-telling  and  speech-making.  Col- 
onel Donovan  and  I  made  it  a  practice  to  attend  them  all, 
and  he  got  in  many  a  strong  word  on  spirit  and  discipline 
which  had  better  results  in  that  environment  than  could 


320  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

4 

have  been  produced  on  a  more  formal  occasion.  Father 
Hanley  was  always  a  favorite  at  these  gatherings  as  he 
handed  out  the  latest  rumors  (which  he  himself  had  manu- 
factured), discoursed  on  the  superiority  of  Cleveland  over 
New  York,  and  of  the  3rd  Battalion  over  any  other  bunch 
of  fighting  men  in  the  whole  universe.  It  was  a  part  of  my 
share  in  the  function  to  speak  on  the  good  men  in  the  Com- 
pany that  had  paid  the  great  price ;  and  it  is  a  tribute  to  the 
loyalty  and  steadfastness  of  human  nature  to  see  how  the 
merry-makers  would  pause  in  their  enjoyment  to  pay  the 
tribute  of  a  sigh  or  a  tear  to  the  memory  of  their  com- 
panions of  tlie  battlefield  *who  were  absent  from  their 
triumph. 

Our  winter  on  the  Rhine  was  our  happiest  period  in  the 
whole  war.  First  and  foremost  the  regiment  was  all  together 
in  one  place;  and  companionship  is  by  far  tlie  biggest  ele- 
ment of  satisfaction  in  a  soldier's  life.  The  men  had  good 
warm  billets  and  most  of  them  had  beds  to  sleep  on.  The 
food  was  substantial  and  plentiful,  though,  for  that  matter, 
I  think  we  were  at  all  times  the  best  fed  army  that  ever 
went  to  war.  There  were  periods  of  starv^ation  in  battles, 
but  the  main  difficulty  was  even  then  in  getting  it  from  the 
kitchen  to  the  men  in  line. 

The  men  had  enough  work  to  do  to  keep  them  in  good 
healthy  condition  and  to  prevent  them  from  becoming  dis- 
contented; but  all  in  all,  it  was  an  easy  life.  All  of  the 
old-timers  got  a  chance  to  go  off  on  leave,  most  of  them 
choosing  Paris,  the  Riviera,  or  Ireland.  Short  excursions 
to  Coblenz  by  rail  or  river  were  given  to  everylxidy. 

Our  band  had  a  prominent  part  in  adding  to  the  pleasures 
of  life.  Bandmaster  Ed.  Zitzman  had  returned  from  school, 
and  he  with  the  Drum  Major  John  Mullin  and  Sergeants 
Jim  Lynch  and  Paddy  Stokes  made  frequent  demands  on 
me  for  funds  to. purchase  music  and  extra  instruments.  In 
France  I  had  bought  sixteen  clairoiis  or  trumpets  for  the 
Company  buglers  to  play  with  the  Band.  Here  on  the 
Rhine   I   bought   other   instruments,    including   orchestral 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        321 

ones,  so  we  were  well  supplied  for  field  or  chamber  music. 
Lieutenant  Slayter  took  charge  of  the  Band  in  matters  of 
discipline  and  march  time,  with  excellent  results. 

One  of  the  greatest  of  our  successes  during  this  period 
was  the  165th  Minstrels,  organized  by  Major  Lawrence, 
always  active  in  everything  for  the  good  of  the  men.  After 
having  scored  a  distinct  hit  at  home  and  throughout  the 
Division,  they  went  on  a  tour  through  the  Army  of  Occu- 
pation, and  were  booked  to  go  back  through  France  if  we 
had  remained  longer  abroad.  The  performers  were :  Inter- 
locutor, William  K.  McGrath;  End  Men,  Harry  Mallen, 
Thomas  McCardle,  Harold  Carmody,  Edward  Finley,  and 
Charles  Woods;  Soubrettes,  Robert  Harrison,  James 
O'Keefe,  James  F.  O'Brien,  William  O'Neill,  James  Mack, 
Melvin  King,  and  John  McLaughlin;  Chorus:  Charles 
Weinz,  Edward  Smith,  John  Brawley,  John  Ryan,  John 
Zimmerman,  John  Mullins,  Thomas  O'Kelly,  Eugene  Eag- 
an,  Walter  Hennessey,  Peter  Rogers,  William  Yanss,  Clin- 
ton Rice,  Thomas  Donohue,  Chester  Taylor,  Sylvester  Tay- 
lor, James  Kelly,  Charles  Larson,  with  T.  Higginbotham 
as  strong  man  and  Milton  Steckels  as  contortionist. 

The  health  of  the  command  has  been  excellent,  although 
since  we  have  come  into  civilized  parts  we  have  developed 
a  certain  amount  of  pneumonia  which  we  escaped  while 
living  in  the  hardships  of  the  Argonne.  Since  leaving  Bac- 
carat I  know  of  only  two  of  our  men  who  have  died  from 
other  than  battle  causes;  Private  Myers  of  the  Machine  Gun 
Company  was  drowned  in  the  Marne  in  August  and  John 
E,  Weaver  of  Company  L  died  during  the  same  month  of 
illness.  In  Germany  we  lost  Corporal  Patrick  McCarthy, 
Company  E,  died  of  pneumonia  October  20th,  W,  J.  Sil- 
vey  of  Company  D,  James  Kalonishiskie  and  Robert  Clato 
of  M,  James  C.  Vails  of  H,  Corporal  Joseph  M.  SeagrifT,, 
James  O'Halloran,  Charles  Nebel  and  Terrence  McNally  of 
Supply  Company,  Emery  Thrash  and  George  San  ford  of  L, 
Carl  Demarco  of  F,  and  one  of  the  best  of  our  Sergeants, 
John  B.  Kerrigan  of  Headquarters  Company. 


322  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Our  only  grievances  were  the  difficulties  of  getting  back 
our  old  officers  and  men,  and  the  stoppage  of  promotions 
for  officers  after  the  Armistice.  Every  day  my  mail  had  a 
number  of  letters  from  soldiers  all  over  France  asking  me 
to  get  them  back  to  the  Regiment;  and  work  on  this  line 
constituted  my  greatest  occupation.  Many  of  the  men  took 
the  matter  in  their  own  hands  and  worked  their  way  across 
France,  dodging  M.  P.'s,  stealing  rides  on  trucks  and  trains, 
begging  meals  from  kindly  cooks  and  nice  old  French 
ladies,  and  finally,  if  their  luck  held  out,  getting  back 
amongst  their  own.  Others  were  returned  by  a  more  legiti- 
mate route,  until,  by  the  time  we  left  the  Rhine  we  had  near- 
ly fourteen  hundred  men  who  belonged  to  the  original  com- 
mand. 

A  large  number  of  our  officers  had  been  recommended, 
some  of  them  over  and  over  again,  for  promotion,  and  had 
not  received  it  on  account  of  wounds  which  kept  them  in 
hospitals  when  the  promotion  might  have  come  through. 
And  now  they  were  barred  from  receiving  the  rank  which 
they  had  earned  on  the  battlefield,  the  vacancies  being  filled 
by  replacements.  Some  of  these  replacement  officers  made 
themselves  a  warm  place  in  the  heart  of  the  regiment  espe- 
cially Major  James  Watson,  who  joined  us  in  Luxembourg 
and  was  put  in  command  of  the  3rd  Battalion;  and  also  an 
old  friend  of  ours  from  the  12th  New  York,  Major  Jay 
Zom,  who  was  with  us  for  a  short  time. 

Finally  this  legitimate  grievance  was  settled  in  the  most 
ample  and  satisfactory  fashion.  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dono- 
van was  made  Colonel,  and  placed  in  command  of  the 
regiment.  Colonel  Rowland  going  to  take  charge  of  a  leave 
area  in  France.  Major  Anderson  was  made  Lieutenant 
Colonel,  and  Bootz,  Meaney  and  Merle-Smith  Llajors. 
There  were  also  a  number  of  promotions  to  the  rank  of 
Captain  both  in  the  line  companies  and  in  the  Sanitary 
Detachment.  There  were  two  other  men  that  we  all  felt 
should  have  gotten  their  majority,  but  when  the  original 
recommendations  were  made  they  were  both  suffering  from 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        323 

wounds  in  hospitals  with  no  seeming  prospects  of  ever  get- 
ting back  to  the  regiment.  These  two  were  Captain  John  P. 
Hurley  and  Captain  Richard  J.  Ryan,  who  also,  to  every- 
body's great  delight,  rejoined  us  on  this  river  (which  we 
call  the  Ryan  river)  though  still  in  a  doubtful  state  of 
health. 

Many  of  these  promotions  came  after  Donovan's  acces- 
sion to  the  command  and  through  his  energetic  efforts.  He 
also  made  use  of  every  possible  means  through  official  and 
private  channels,  to  get  back  every  officer  and  man  of  the 
Old  Regiment  that  was  able  to  come.  First  and  foremost 
amongst  these  was  Lieutenant  Colonel  Timothy  J.  j\Ioy- 
nahan,  who  left  us  in  Baccarat  as  a  Major  and  had  won 
his  Lieutenant  Colonelcy  as  well  as  a  D.  S.  C.  and  a  Croix 
de  Guerre  with  the  37th  Division.  Jack  jMangan,  now 
Major  Mangan,  came  back  from  2nd  Army  Headquarters. 
We  had  an  abundance  of  majors  though  we  had  lost  one 
of  them — Major  Tom  Reilley,  who  had  been  sent  home 
much  against  his  will  for  a  promotion  which  he  never  re- 
ceived, just  after  the  fighting  was  over. 

We  also  got  back  a  lot  of  happy  lieutenants  who  had 
gone  to  officers  Candidate  Schools,  and  had  been  commis- 
sioned in  other  Divisions,  the  happiest  of  the  lot,  I  think, 
being  Leo  Larney,  a  fine  athlete  and  a  fine  man.  We  had 
often  recommended  men  for  promotion  in  the  regiment 
but  had  been  successful  in  very  few  cases.  Sergeant 
Thomas  McCarthy  was  commissioned  after  the  Ourcq; 
and  later  on  Sergeants  Patrick  Neary  and  John  J. 
Larkin  were  sent  back  to  us  from  school  as  sergeants 
because  the  war  started  too  soon  after  they  left  Ireland. 
When  facilities  for  becoming  citizens  were  extended  to  men 
in  their  case,  they  received  their  commissions  in  the  regi- 
ment, and  both  did  remarkable  work  in  the  Argonne.  Ser- 
geant Frank  Johnston  of  Company  E  was  for  a  long  time 
an  officer  without  knowing  it,  as  his  commission  had  been 
sent  to  his  home  address. 

Colonel  Donovan  also  inaugurated  a  series  of  little  en- 


324  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

tertainments  and  dinners,  inviting  the  leading  officers  of 
other  regiments  in  the  Division  to  partake  of  our  Metropoli- 
tan Hibernian  hospitality.  Everybody  in  the  Division  likes 
Donovan,  and  they  were  as  much  delighted  as  we  when  he 
finally  got  command  of  the  Regiment  that  he  had  so  often 
led  in  action.  One  of  our  greatest  friends  is  Colonel  John 
Johnson  of  the  Engineers,  a  manly  forthright  two-fisted 
South  Carolinian ;  we  delight  also  in  verbal  encounter  with 
Colonel  Heiwy  Reilly  of  the  149  Field  Artillery,  a  man  of 
wide  experience,  unlimited  mental  resources,  and  agile  wit. 
The  other  three  infantr}'  colonels  Hough,  Screws  and  Tin- 
ley  have  been  with  the  Division  from  the  beginning  and  our 
interchange  of  visits  with  them  will  be  always  one  of  the 
pleasantest  recollections  of  the  campaign. 

We  celebrated  St.  Patrick's  Day  on  the  Rhine  in  the  best 
approved  manner  with  religion,  games  and  feasting.  My 
altar  was  set  up  in  a  field  l^eside  the  river.  The  theme  for 
my  discourse  was  tlie  debt  that  the  world  owes  to  the  sons  of 
Saint  Patrick  for  their  fight  for  civil  and  religious  liberty 
at  home  and  abroad,  with  the  prayer  that  that  debt  might 
now  be  squared  by  the  bestowal  of  liberty  on  the  Island 
from  whence  we  sprung. 

The  day  before  Saint  Patrick's  Day  the  whole  Division 
was  reviewed  by  the  Commander-in-Chief,  General  Per- 
shing, at  Remagen.  It  was  a  note-worthy  military  cere- 
mony in  an  appropriate  setting,  by  the  banks  of  that  river 
of  historic  associations.  When  he  came  to  our  regiment 
the  eyes  of  General  Pershing  were  taken  by  the  silver  furls 
which  covered  the  staff  of  our  flag  from  the  silk  of  the 
colors  to  the  lowest  tip.  In  fact,  that  staff  is  now  in  excess 
of  the  regulation  length,  as  we  had  to  add  an  extra  foot  to 
it  to  get  on  the  nine  furls  that  record  our  battles  in  this 
war.  "What  Regiment  is  this?"  he  asked.  "The  165th 
Infantr}',  Sir."  "What  Regiment  was  it?"  "The  69th  New 
York,  Sir."    "The  69th  Xew  York.    I  understand  now." 

This  visit  was  the  final  hint  that  our  stay  was  not  to  be 
long.     The  whole  Division  got  together  to  organize  tlie 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        325 

"Rainbow  Division  Veterans  which  we  did  at  an  enthusiastic 
and  encouragingly  contentious  meeting  at  Neuenahr. 

When  the  orders  finally  came  for  our  return  to  America 
I  received  them  with  a  joy  that  was  tinged  with  regret  that 
the  associations  of  the  past  two  years  were  to  be  broken 
up.  They  had  been  years  full  of  life  and  activity,  and 
take  them  all  in  all,  years  of  happiness.  There  never  was 
a  moment  when  I  wanted  to  be  any  place  other  than  I  was. 
There  were  times  of  great  tragedy,  of  seeing  people  killed 
and  of  burying  my  dearest  friends,  but  all  that  was  part  of 
the  tragedy  of  our  generation.  It  would  not  have  been  any 
less  if  I  were  not  present,  and  it  was  some  consolation  to  be 
where  I  could  render  some  little  comfort  to  the  men  who 
had  to  go  through  them  and  to  the  relatives  of  those  who 
paid  the  big  price. 

The  sense  of  congenial  companionship  more  than  makes 
up  for  the  hardships  incidental  to  a  campaign.  What  I 
am  going  to  miss  most  is  the  friendships  I  have  formed.  In 
a  very  special  degree  I  am  going  to  miss  Donovan.  Nearly 
every  evening  we  take  our  walk  together  along  the  river 
road  that  parallels  the  Rhine.  It  is  the  very  spot  which 
Byron  selected  for  description  in  Childe  Harold.  The  Rhine 
turns  sharply  to  the  right  to  make  its  way  through  the 
gorge  of  the  Siebengebirge.  "The  castled  crag  of  Drachen- 
fels"  looks  down  upon  the  peaceful  cloistered  isle  of  Non- 
nenwerth,  upon  pleasant  villages  and  vineyard  terraces  and 
beautiful  villas  which,  with  the  majestic  river,  make  the 
scene  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  the  world. 

The  companionship  makes  it  all  the  more  attractive.  This 
young  Buffalo  lawyer  who  was  suddenly  called  into  the 
business  of  war,  and  has  made  a  name  for  himself  through- 
out the  American  Expeditionary  Forces  for  outstanding 
courage  and  keen  military  judgment,  is  a  remarkable  man. 
As  a  boy  he  reveled  in  Thomas  Francis  Meagher's  "Speech 
on  the  Sword,"  and  his  dream  of  life  was  to  command  an 
Irish  brigade  in  the  service  of  the  Republic.  His  dream 
came  true,  for  the  69th  in  this  war  was  larger  than  the 


S26  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Irish  Brigade  ever  was.  But  it  did  not  come  true  by  mere 
dreaming.  He  is  always  physically  fit,  always  alert,  ready 
to  do  without  food,  sleep,  rest,  in  the  most  matter  of  fact 
way,  thinking  of  nothing  but  the  work  in  hand.  He  has 
mind  and  manners  and  varied  experience  of  life  and  res- 
oluteness of  purpose.  He  has  kept  himself  clean  and  sane 
and  whole  for  whatever  adventure  life  might  bring  him,  and 
he  has  come  through  this  surpassing  adventure  with  honor 
and  fame.  I  like  him  for  his  alert  mind  and  just  views 
and  ready  wit,  for  his  generous  enthusiasms  and  his  whole 
engaging  personality.  The  richest  gain  I  have  gotten  out 
of  the  war  is  the  friendship  of  William  J.  Donovan. 

That  is  the  way  I  talk  about  him  to  myself.  When  we 
are  together  we  always  find  something  to  fight  about.  One 
unfailing  subject  of  discussion  is  which  of  us  is  the  greater 
hero.  That  sounds  rather  conceited,  and  all  the  more  so 
when  I  say  that  each  of  us  sticks  up  strongly  for  himself. 
Those  infernal  youngsters  of  ours  have  been  telling  stories 
about  both  of  us,  most  of  which,  at  least  those  that  concern 
myself,  attest  the  loyalty  of  my  friends  better  than  their 
veracity.  There  is  only  one  way  to  take  it — as  a  joke.  If 
either  of  us  gets  a  clipping  in  which  his  name  is  mentioned 
he  brandishes  it  before  company  under  the  nose  of  the  other 
challenging  him  to  produce  some  proof  of  being  as  great 
a  hero.  The  other  day  Captain  Ryan  gave  Donovan- an 
editorial  about  him  from  a  paper  in  Watertown,  N.  Y.  It 
was  immediately  brought  to  mess,  and  Donovan  thought 
he  had  scored  a  triumph,  but  I  countered  with  a  quotation 
from  a  letter  which  said  that  my  picture,  jewelled  with  elec- 
tric lights,  had  a  place  of  honor  in  the  window  of  a  saloon 
on  14th  Street.    Donovan  surrendered. 

I  got  a  letter  from  Tom  Reilley,  who  is  back  in  New 
York,  and  disgusted  with  life  because  he  is  no  longer  with 
us;  and  he  gave  me  some  choice  ammunition.  "Father 
Duffy,"  he  said,  "You  are  certainly  a  wonderful  man. 
Your  press  agents  are  working  overtime.  Recently  you 
have  been  called  the  'Miracle  Man,'  thus  depriving  George 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION         327 

Stallings  of  the  title.  In  the  newspaper  league  you  have 
Bill  Donovan  beat  by  9,306  columns.  I  wish  you  would  tell 
me,  How  do  you  wade  through  a  stream  of  machine  gun 
bullets?  And  that  little  stunt  of  yours  of  letting  high  ex- 
plosive shells  bounce  off  your  chest — you  could  make  your 
fortune  in  a  circus  doing  that  for  the  rest  of  your  life." 

It  is  all  very  amusing  now,  but  it  is  going  to  be  extremely 
embarrassing  when  we  get  back  amongst  civilians  where 
people  take  these  things  too  seriously.  They  kept  me  too 
long  as  a  professor  of  metaphysics  to  fit  me  for  the  proper 
enjoyment  of  popularity.  Donovan  says  that  after  his  final 
duties  to  the  regiment  are  finished  he  is  going  to  run  away 
from  it  all  and  go  off  with  his  wife  on  a  trip  to  Japan. 

On  April  the  second  we  boarded  our  trains  for  Brest — ^ 
the  first  leg  on  the  way  home.  We  had  a  happy  trip  across 
France  in  the  most  comfortably  arranged  troop  trains  that 
Europe  ever  saw ;  remained  three  or  four  days  at  Brest,  and 
sailed  for  Hoboken,  the  regiment  being  split  up  on  two 
ships.  Our  headquarters  and  the  first  six  companies  were 
on  the  Harrisburg,  formerly  the  City  of  Paris  in  the  Amer- 
ican Line.  Jim  Collintine  used  to  sail  on  it  and  is  very  en- 
thusiastic in  his  praises.  It  is  funny  to  hear  him  telling  a 
seasick  bunch  "Ain't  it  a  grand  boat !  A  lovely  boat !  Sure 
you  wouldn't  know  you  were  aboard  her.  And  she's  the 
woise  ould  thing.  She's  been  over  this  thrip  so  often  that 
if  niver  a  man  put  a  hand  to  her  wheel  she'd  pick  her  own 
way  out  and  niver  stop  or  veer  till  she  turned  her  nose 
into  the  dock,  like  an  ould  horse  findin'  its  way  to  the 
manger." 

After  the  men  had  found  their  sea-legs  we  had  a  happy 
trip.  We  spent  Easter  Sunday  aboard,  celebrating  it  in 
holy  fashion. 

It  was  a  happy  throng  that  stood  on  the  decks  of  the 
Harrisburg  on  the  morning  of  April  21st,  gazing  at  the 
southern  shores  of  Long  Island,  and  then  the  Statue  of 
Liberty,  and  the  massive  towering  structures  that  announce 
to    incoming    voyagers    the    energy    and    daring    of    the 


328        FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

Western  Republic.  Then  down  the  bay  came  the  welcoming^ 
flotilla  bearing  relatives,  friends  and  benefactors. 

The  number  of  our  welcomers  and  the  ampleness  of  their 
enthusiasm  were  the  first  indications  we  had  of  the  over- 
whelming welcome  which  was  to  be  ours  during  the  follow- 
ing two  weeks.  I  do  not  intend  to  speak  here  at  any  length, 
of  these  events,  as  the  gentlemen  of  the  press  have  described 
them  better  than  I  could  ever  hope  to  do.  The  freedom 
of  the  city  was  conferred  upon  Colonel  Donovan  and  his 
staff  by  Mayor  Hylan  and  the  Board  of  Alderman ;  and  a 
dinner  was  given  to  the  officers  by  the  Mayor's  Committee 
headed  by  the  genial  Commissioner  Rodman  Wanamaker. 
Our  own  Board  of  Trustees,  the  most  generous  and  efficient 
lot  of  backers  that  any  fighting  outfit  ever  had  since  war 
began,  gave  the  whole  regiment  a  dinner  at  the  Hotel  Com- 
modore which  set  a  new  record  in  the  history  of  repasts. 
Our  brethren  of  the  69th  New  York  Guard  also  gave  a 
dinner  to  the  officers  of  the  165th.  And  Colonel  Donovan 
and  I  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  the  Press  Assocation  and 
the  Lamb's  Club.  Another  big  baseball  game,  through  the 
good  will  of  the  owners  of  the  Giants,  added  fresh  funds 
to  the  money  at  my  disposal  for  needy  families.  My  own 
fellow  towmsmen  in  the  Bronx  prepared  a  public  reception, 
for  which  every  last  detail  was  arranged  except  the  weath- 
er; but  I  was  prouder  than  ever  of  them  when  they  put  the 
thing  through  in  good  soldier  fashion,  regardless  of  the 
meanest  day  of  wund  and  rain  that  New  York  ever  saw 
in  the  month  of  May. 

There  was  nothing  that  imagination  could  conceive  or 
energy  perform  that  our  Board  of  Trustees  was  not  willing 
to  do  for  us.  Dan  Brady,  who  has  neglected  his  business 
for  the  past  two  years  to  look  after  the  69th,  and 
all  the  rest  of  them,  devoted  themselves  entirely  to  further- 
ing our  well-being  and  our  glory.  The  only  thing  I  have 
against  Dan  is  that  he  makes  me  work  as  hard  as  himself, 
and  bosses  me  around  continually.  At  one  of  the  dinners  I 
said  that  if  Dan  Brady  had  taken  up  the  same  kind  of  a  job 


WITH  THE  ARMY  OF  OCCUPATION        329 

that  I  had,  he  would  be  a  bishop  by  now;  but  if  he  were 
my  Bishop  I'd  be  a  Baptist  or  a  Presbyterian;  in  some 
Church  auNway,  that  doesn't  have  Bishops. 

The  part  of  our  reception  which  I  enjoyed  most  of  all 
was  the  parade  up  Fifth  Avenue.  The  whole  regiment 
shared  in  it,  including  the  extra  battalion,  seven  hundred 
strong,  of  men  who  had  been  invalided  home,  and  others 
of  our  wounded  who  had  a  place  of  honor  on  the  grand- 
stand. Archbishop  Hayes,  who  had  blessed  us  as  we  left 
the  Armory,  Mayor  Hylan,  men  prominent  in  State  and 
City,  in  Army  and  Navy  affairs,  united  to  pay  their  tribute 
of  praise  to  the  old  regiment.  And  thousands  and  thou- 
sands of  people  on  the  stands  cheered  and  cheered  and 
cheered,  so  that  for  five  miles  the  men  walked  through  a  din 
of  applause,  till  the  band  playing  the  American  and  Irish 
airs  could  scarce  be  heard. 

It  was  a  deserved  tribute  to  a  body  of  citizen  soldiers 
who  had  played  such  a  manful  part  in  battle  for  the  service 
of  the  Republic.  The  appreciation  that  the  country  pays 
to  its  war  heroes  is  for  the  best  interest  of  the  State.  I  am 
not  a  militarist,  nor  keen  for  military  glory.  But  as  long  as 
liberties  must  be  defended,  and  oppression  or  aggression 
put  down,  there  must  always  be  honor  paid  to  that  spirit 
in  men  which  makes  them  willing  to  die  for  a  righteous 
cause.  Next  after  reason  and  justice,  it  is  the  highest 
quality  in  citizens  of  a  state. 

Our  fathers  in  this  republic,  in  their  poverty  and  lowli- 
ness, founded  many  institutions,  ecclesiastical,  financial, 
charitable,  which  have  grown  stronger  with  the  years.  One 
of  these  institutions  was  a  military  organization,  which  they 
passed  on  to  us  with  the  flag  of  the  fifty  silver  furls.  To 
these  we  have  added  nine  more  in  the  latest  war  of  our 
country.  As  it  was  borne  up  the  Avenue  flanked  by  that 
other  banner  whose  stars  of  gold  commemmorated  the  six 
hundred  and  fifty  dead  heroes  of  the  regiment,  and  sur- 
rounded by  three  thousand  veterans,  I  felt  that  in  the  breasts 
of  generous  and  devoted  youths  that  gazed  upon  them  there 


830  FATHER  DUFFY'S  STORY 

arose  a  determination  that  if,  in  their  generation,  the  Re- 
pubHc  ever  needed  defenders,  they  too  would  face  the  perils 
of  battle  in  their  country's  cause. 

Men  pass  away,  but  institutions  survive.  In  time  we  shall 
all  go  to  join'  our  comrades  who  gave  up  their  lives  in 
France.  But  in  our  own  generation,  when  the  call  came,  we 
accepted  the  flag  of  our  fathers;  we  have  added  to  it  new 
glory  and  renown — and  we  pass  it  on. 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  BY  JOYCE  KILMER 


Fifth  Avenue  held  a  memorable  crowd  on  the  afternoon 
of  the  ninth  of  March,  191 7.  There  were  old  women  there 
in  whose  eyes  was  the  eager  light  that  only  the  thought  of 
a  son  can  cause  to  glow ;  there  were  proud  old  men — some  of 
them  with  battered  blue  garrison-caps,  and  badges  that  told 
of  service  in  the  War  between  the  States — there  were  wives, 
mothers,  children — all  waiting,  in  jubilant  and  affectionate  ex- 
pectation, the  sound  of  a  band  playing  "Garryowen"  and  the 
sight  of  a  flag  fluttering  from  a  pole  so  covered  with  battle- 
furls  as  to  glisten  in  the  sunlight  like  a  bar  of  silver. 

The  Sixty-ninth  Regiment  was  back  from  the  border.  Es- 
corted by  its  old  friend,  the  Seventh  New  York,  the  Regiment 
marched  nearly  eight  hundred  strong,  down  the  Avenue  and 
east  to  the  Armory.  The  crowd — or  a  large  part  of  it — 
followed,  and  soon  families  separated  for  months  were  re- 
united. When  the  Sixty-ninth  was  mustered  out  of  service 
that  March  day,  after  months  of  arduous  service  on  the  Mexi- 
can Border,  it  numbered  783  men.  Almost  immediately  it  lost 
some  three  hundred  officers  and  men.  This  was  in  accord- 
ance with  War  Department  orders  and  the  National  Defense 
Act  of  June  3rd,  1916,  which  provided  that  men  with  depend- 
ant relatives  should  be  discharged  from  the  service.  Men 
were  lost  also  because  of  the  system,  now  discontinued,  by 
which  a  soldier  in  the  National  Guard  was  furloughed  to  the 
reserve  after  three  years  of  active  service. 

So  in  the  early  Spring  of  191 7,  with  participation  in  the 
European  War  a  certainty,  the  Sixty-ninth  Regiment  found 
itself  far  below  war  strength,  having  lost  a  great  number  of 
men  whom  experience  and  training  had  made  ideal  soldiers. 
At  once  a  recruiting  campaign  was  instituted,  but  a  recruiting 

331 


332  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

campaign  of  a  special  kind.  The  Sixty-ninth  has  never  found 
it  at  all  difficult  to  fill  its  ranks — when  it  was  under  Southern 
fire  in  the  Sixties  it  was  brought  up  to  war  strength  nine  times. 
But  the  purpose  in  view  now  was  to  bring  into  the  regiment 
men  who  would,  in  every  purpose  and  way — physically,  men- 
tally and  morally — keep  up  its  ancient  and  honorable  stand- 
ards. It  was  easy  enough  to  enlist  hundreds  of  strong  men 
who  could  be  developed  into  good  soldiers.  But  this  was 
not  the  object  of  the  recruiting  of  the  Spring  of  19 17.  It 
was  desired  to  enlist  strong,  intelligent,  decent-living  men, 
men  whose  sturdy  Americanism  was  strengthened  and  vivified 
by  their  Celtic  blood,  men  who  would  be  worthy  successors  of 
those  unforgotten  patriots  who  at  Bloody  Ford  and  on  Marye's 
Heights  earned  the  title  of  "The  Fighting  Irish." 

The  Regiment  set  its  own  standards  in  selecting  recruits. 
In  weight,  for  example,  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  pounds 
was  established  as  the  minimum.  And  if  some  honest  man 
with  broad  shoulders  and  a  knockout  in  each  fist,  was  unable  to 
read  ACXUROKY  on  a  card  hung  thirty  feet  away — why, 
the  examining  physicians  were  instructed  not  to  be  overly 
meticulous  in  their  work.  But  if  the  candidate,  having  every 
physical  perfection,  seemed  to  be  the  kind  of  man  who  would 
be  out  of  harmony  with  the  things  for  which  the  Sixty-ninth 
stands  and  has  always  stood,  then  the  rigorous  application  of 
some  of  the  qualifying  tests  invariably  resulted  in  his  rejection. 

When,  on  April  6th,  191 7,  President  Wilson  declared  that  a 
state  of  war  existed  between  the  United  States  and  Germany, 
his  words  found  the  Sixty-ninth  Regiment  ready,  its  ranks 
filled  to  war  strength  with  soldiers  of  whom  the  men  who 
fought  at  Gettysburg  and  Chancellorsville  would  not  be 
ashamed.  There  was  new  intensity  in  the  nightly  drills;  there 
was  new  fervor  in  the  resolve  of  every  man,  veteran  of  the 
Border  and  recruit  alike,  to  make  the  Regiment  as  nearly 
perfect  a  fighting  unit  as  possible. 

The  6th  of  April  is  a  date  which  no  American  soldier  will 
forget.  And  almost  equally  memorable  is  the  15th  day  of 
July  of  the  same  year — the  day  on  which  the  National  Guard 
was  called  into  Federal  Service.  The  Sixty-ninth  regiment, 
2002  strong,  scarcely  felt  the  heat  of  that  torrid  midsummer, 
so  intent  were  all  the  men  on  preparing  themselves  for  the 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  333 

great  adventure,  and  so  passionately  eager  were  they  for  the 
-call  to  service  overseas. 

On  the  5th  of  August  the  Regiment,  still  retaining  the  nu- 
merical designation  which  is  permanently  engraved  upon  the 
tablets  of  our  nation's  history,  was  drafted  into  the  Regular 
Army  of  the  United  States.  This  was  a  step  nearer  to  the 
firing  line — made,  accordingly,  with  enthusiasm.  And  on  the 
25th  day  of  August  came  the  electrifying  news  that  the  Sixty- 
ninth  Regiment  had  been  selected  as  the  first  New  York  Na- 
tional Guard  organization  to  be  sent  to  the  war  in  vanguard 
of  the  American  Expeditionary  Force. 

The  circumstances  in  which  the  announcement  was  made 
to  the  regiment  were  striking.  It  was  a  boiling  Saturday  after- 
noon and  officers  and  men  were  exhausted  from  the  exercises 
of  the  morning— a  Divisional  inspection  in  Central  Park.  The 
regiment  marched  through  the  dusty  streets  and  ascended  the 
steps  into  the  Armory  to  learn  that  they  were  not  to  be  im- 
mediately dismissed,  but  were  to  stay  on  the  drill  floor  or  in 
the  Company  rooms.  Lieutenant  Colonel  Latham  R.  Reed  had 
gone  to  Governor's  Island  to  attend  an  important  conference, 
and  officers  and  men  were  ordered  to  await  his  return.  Every- 
one hopefully  awaited  the  arrival  of  splendid  tidings,  and  the 
weariness  seemed  to  pass  away. 

When  Lieutenant  Colonel  Reed  returned,  he  called  a  meet- 
ing of  his  staff  and  the  Battalion  and  Company  Commanders, 
and  told  them  such  details  as  were  then  obtainable  of  the 
great  honor  which  had  come  to  the  regiment  they  loved.  There 
were  present  Major  William  J.  Donovan,  Major  W^illiam  B. 
Stacom,  Major  Timothy  J.  Moynahan,  Captain  George  Mc- 
Adie,  Captain  Thomas  T.  Reilley,  Captain  William  Kennelly, 
Captain  James  A.  McKenna,  Jr.,  Captain  Alexander  E.  Ander- 
son, Captain  Michael  A.  Kelly,  Captain  James  J.  Archer,  Cap- 
tain James  G.  Finn,  Captain  Van  S.  Merle-Smith  Captain 
John  P.  Hurley,  and  Captain  William  T.  Doyle.  They 
heard  the  good  news  with  undisguised  delight  and  at  once  pro- 
ceeded to  prepare  for  the  necessary  intensive  training. 

But  as  great  as  was  their  delight,  h  was  clouded  with  one 
regret.  And  that  regret  was  felt  also  by  every  enlisted  man. 
They  all  knew  that  the  Regiment  had  '^een  the  first  selected  to 
go  abroad  not  because  of  what  it  had  aone  in  the  Civil  War, 


834.  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

nor  because  it  was  representative  of  what  was  best  in  the 
citizenship  of  our  nation's  greatest  city.  It  had  been  selected, 
after  a  long  and  searching  examination  of  the  military  re- 
sources of  the  country,  because  its  record  in  the  most  recent 
important  test — the  Mexican  Border  Campaign — showed  it  to 
be  the  best  trained  and  equipped  fighting  unit  that  America 
possessed.  And  the  man  who  had  done  more  than  all  others 
to  bring  the  Regiment  to  this  point,  the  man  who  during  the 
lonsf  strenuous  months  on  the  Border  had  moulded  it  after  his 
own  ideal  pattern  of  soldierly  efficiency — that  man  was  absent 
from  the  conference  at  which  was  announced  the  momentous 
news.  There  was  not  an  officer  in  the  conference  room,  there 
was  not  an  enlisted  man  on  the  drill  floor  that  day,  who  did 
not  think  of  Colonel  William  N.  Haskell — of  the  joy  with 
which  he  would  lead  his  beloved  Regiment  into  the  Great  War, 
of  the  joy  with  which  that  Regiment  would  follow  him  across 
the  ocean  and  over  the  parapet  and  through  the  German  lines 
to  the  Kaiser's  palace.  There  was  not  an  officer  or  man  who 
did  not  recall  his  last  words  when  he  was  ordered  to  another 
duty  'T  want  to  lead  the  69th  Regiment  into  a  fight." 

Colonel  Haskell  was  absent  from  this  historic  conference. 
He  had  been  lent,  not  given  to  the  Regiment,  and  now  the 
Government  claimed  his  valuable  services  to  solve  some  of  the 
problems  of  the  new  National  Army.  But  he  was  present 
in  spirit — in  the  thoughts  of  everyone  in  the  building  and  in 
the  fitness  he  had  given  to  the  Regiment's  personnel. 

Soon  after  the  announcement  that  the  Sixty-ninth  Regiment 
was  to  be  one  of  the  very  first  into  battle  it  was  learned  that 
the  Regiment  was  to  be  brought  up  to  a  strength  of  3500, 
according  to  the  scheme  which  the  French  military  experts 
had  developed  from  their  hard-bought  experience  with  the 
conditions  of  modern  warfare.  It  would  have  been  a  task 
gratifying  to  the  whole  Regiment,  including  Colonel  Charles 
Hine,  who  now  was  placed  in  command,  to  build  up  the 
Regiment  to  this  size  by  means  of  the  recruiting  methods 
which  already  had  proved  so  successful.  But  it  had  been  de- 
cided by  higher  autiiorities  that  the  Regiment's  numbers  should 
be  augmented  by  additions  from  other  New  York  National 
Guard  organizations.     Accordingly,  one  day  in  August,  191 7^ 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  335 

there  arrived  at  the  armory  the  first  of  the  new  increments— 
332  men  from  the  7th  New  York  Infantry. 

The  ties  that  bind  the  7th  and  the  69th  are  ancient  and 
strong.  The  friendship  between  the  two  organizations  has 
often  been  strikingly  manifested.  It  was  much  in  evidence 
when  the  New  York  National  Guard  was  stationed  on  the 
Border.  But  it  has  never  been  displayed  more  convincingly 
than  on  the  day  that  the  men  from  the  7th  joined  the  69th. 
Escorted  to  the  doors  of  the  armory  by  the  rest  of  the  7th,  led 
by  Colonel  Willard  C.  Fisk,  the  men  found  the  entire  69th 
Regiment  assembled  to  welcome  them.  They  were  made  at 
home;  they  found  it  no  difficult  task  to  orient  themselves  to 
their  new  surroundings.  Without  any  disloyalty  to  the  ven- 
erable regiment  they  had  left,  they  accepted  as  their  own  the 
traditions  and  standards  of  the  69th  and  became  not  a  distinct 
group  added  to  the  Regiment  but  a  vital  part  of  it. 

On  the  20th  of  August  the  69th  Regiment,  now  2,500  strong, 
again  marched  through  New  York,  and  again  an  enormous 
crowd  witnessed  and  followed  the  march.  But  this  crowd, 
unlike  that  of  the  9th  of  March  previous,  was  not  composed  of 
people  rejoicing  over  a  long-sought  reunion.  The  same  men, 
women  and  children  who  had  been  present  on  the  9th  of 
March  to  welcome  the  soldiers  returning  from  the  Rio  Grande 
were  present  and  they  were  as  proud  as,  or  prouder  than  be- 
fore. But  faces  that  had  been  happy  were  fearful  now  and 
the  gestures  were  of  farewell.  Wives  and  mothers  looked 
at  the  bright  ranks  with  smiling  anguish.  The  69th  was 
marching  to  the  ferry  to  cross  the  East  River  and  entrain  for 
Camp  Albert  L.  Mills,  near  Mineola,  New  York.  It  was  the 
first  move  toward  the  front,  to  win  new  battle-rings  for  the 
pole  that  saw  Cold  Harbor  and  Bloody  Ford. 

There  were  many  new  and  strange  experiences  in  store 
for  the  officers  and  men  during  the  period  of  intensive  train- 
ing on  Hempstead  Plains.  A  carefully  planned  schedule  pro- 
vided for  drill  and  instruction  enough  to  fill  nearly  every  min- 
ute of  the  day.  Much  of  the  work  was  repetition  for  those  of 
the  men  who  had  seen  service  on  the  Border,  but  they  entered 
into  it  in  a  way  that  showed  they  thoroughly  appreciated  its 
value.  There  was  also  training  in  those  phases  of  offensive 
and  defensive  warfare  which  have  been  developed  since  Aug- 


336  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

ust,  1914.  This  work  came  in  for  an  especially  large  share 
of  attention.  It  was  no  longer  a  mere  drill;  it  was  active 
preparation  for  the  use  of  what  is,  in  spite  of  trench-mortar, 
cannon,  bomb  and  machine,  the  most  effective  weapon  of  mod- 
ern warfare.  The  Regiment  was  instructed  in  the  use  of  the 
bayonet  by  reserve  officers  who  had  acquired  their  knowledge 
from  men  with  actual  experience  at  the  front.  Gold  steel 
propelled  by  Irishmen  was  said  to  be  what  the  Germans  chiefly 
feared  a_ftd  every  effort  was  made  to  make  sure  that  the  69th 
should  not,  through  lack  of  practice,  be  less  skillful  with  the 
bayonet  than  were  the  Dublin  Fusileers  and  the  Connaught 
Rangers.  Visitors  to  the  camp  who  were  so  fortunate  as  to 
be  present  at  the  bayonet  drill  were  greatly  impressed  by  the 
dexterity  which  the  soldiers  had  gained  in  a  few  weeks,  and 
by  the  intense  realism  which  pervaded  the  exercise. 

And  now  the  Regiment  gained,  from  day  to  day,  the  in- 
crements necessary  to  bring  it  up  to  the  prescribed  war 
strength  of  3500.  The  men  from  the  7th  had  already  been 
assimilated  as  privates  and  non-commissioned  officers;  they 
■  had  become  an  integral  part  of  the  69th  (for  only  on  paper  was 
i  the  name  165th  in  use).  The  23rd,  14th,  71st  and  12th  now 
sent  their  delegations. 

In  most  cases,  the  selection  of  the  men  in  the  various 
armories  was  made  with  perfect  fairness,  the  prescribed  num- 
ber of  sergeants,  corporals  and  privates  being  arbitrarily  taken 
from  the  ranks.  But  in  certain  companies  it  was  soon  evident 
that  the  officers  had  yielded  to  the  natural  temptation  to  en- 
deavor to  retain  in  their  commands  their  best  trained  non- 
coms.  Here  was,  for  instance,  a  corporal  to  be  taken  from 
Blank  Gompany  of  the  Dash  Regiment.  By  strict  adherence  to 
the  letter  of  the  law,  Gorporal  Smith,  a  soldier  of  stainless 
record,  with  three  month's  Border  service  to  his  credit,  should 
be  the  man  to  entrain  for  Camp  Alills.  But  here  was  Private 
Jones,  a  recent  recruit,  not  especially  happy  in  the  Dash 
Regiment  and  probably  not  likely  to  be  homesick  for  it  if 
sent  away.  Why  not  let  him  sew  a  couple  of  stripes  on  the 
sleeves  of  his  new  blouse,  and  go  on  his  way  rejoicing. 

This  is  the  way  some  Company  Commanders  reasoned.  And 
as  a  result,  the  69th  Regiment  found  that  among  its  new 
members  were  some  Sergeants  and  Corporals  whose  military 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  837 

knowledge  included  little  more  than  the  manual  of  arms,  and 
privates  who  were  physically,  morally,  and  mentally  unfit  for 
the  service.  It  was  not  to  be  expected  that  these  men  would 
be  received  with  overwhelming  enthusiasm. 

Many  of  the  soldeirs  received  from  other  regiments — most 
of  them  in  fact,  were  valuable  additions  to  the  69th  and  at 
once  proved  their  usefulness  by  merging  with  the  rest  of  the 
outfit  and  working  for  the  soldierly  perfection  of  ^he  whole 
body.  Of  the  others — well,  some  of  them  were  reformed  by 
thorough  disciplinary  action,  and  others  were  allowed  to  drift 
back  into  civilian  life  by  means  of  liberal  use  of  dependency 
and  surgeon's  certificate  of  disability. 

So  many  soldiers  were  lost  of  those  acquired  from  other 
regiments  that  although  the  time  for  sailing  was  almost  at 
hand  it  was  considered  advisable  to  institute  another  recruit- 
ing campaign.  There  was  no  difiiculty  in  gaining  the  desired 
number  of  recruits ;  the  prospect  of  immediate  service  in 
France  with  the  most  famous  regiment  in  America  brought 
to  the  Armory  doors  three  times  as  many  candidates  as  could 
be  accepted. 

Now  the  wives  and  mothers  who  thronged  the  dusty  Com- 
pany streets  on  Saturday  and  Sunday  afternoons  began  to 
show  stronger  anxiety,  to  look  with  new  intensity  into  the  eyes 
of  their  soldiers  as  they  bade  them  farewell  and  returned  to 
the  city.  For  the  time  for  sailing  was  at  hand — no  one  knew 
just  when  or  just  where  the  Regiment  was  going,  but  all  felt 
it  was  a  question  only  of  days  or  hours. 

Twice  secret  orders  to  sail  were  received  at  Regimental 
Headquarters,  and  twice  these  orders  were  hastily  counter- 
manded. The  suspense  began  to  tell  on  officers  and  men,  to 
tell  even  more,  perhaps  on  those  to  whom  they  had  again  and 
again  to  say  good  bye.  At  last,  on  the  night  of  October  25th, 
Major  Donovan  led  the  first  battalion  through  the  dark  camp 
and  down  the  silent  lanes  to  the  long  train  that  was  to  take 
them  to  Montreal. 

And  now  there  were  no  crowds,  there  was  no  music.  It  was 
a  journey  more  momentous,  greater  in  historical  importance, 
than  the  Regiment's  triumphant  return  from  the  Border,  than 
its  flower  and  flag  decked  setting  forth  for  Camp  Mills.  But 
it  was  not,  like  those  memorable  events,  a  time  for  music  and 


338  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

pomp.  The  feeling  of  the  officers  and  men  was  one  of  stem 
dehght,  of  that  strange  religious  exhaltation  with  which  men 
of  Celtic  race  and  faith  go  into  battle,  whether  the  arena  be 
Vinegar  Hill,  Fontenoy,  or  Rouge  Boquet.  As  the  trainful 
of  happy  warriors  steamed  through  the  first  leagues  of  the 
journey  to  the  Front,  Father  Duffy,  the  Regiment's  beloved 
Chaplain,  passed  from  car  to  car  hearing  confessions  and 
giving  absolution.  Rosaries — the  last  dear  gift  of  mothers  and 
sweethearts — were  taken  out  and  by  squads,  platoons  and  com- 
panies the  soldiers  told  their  beads.  There  was  little  sleep  on 
the  69th  special  for  Montreal  that  night — officers  and  men 
were  too  excited,  too  exalted  for  that.  They  had  entered  at 
last  on  the  adventure  of  their  lives. 

General  O'Ryan  had  said  that  a  soldier  is  a  man  who  always 
wants  to  be  elsewhere  than  where  he  is.  This  is  not  true  of 
soldiers  of  the  race  to  which  General  O'Ryan's  name  indicates 
that  he  belongs.  They  want  to  be  elsewhere — only  when  they 
are  in  some  peaceful  place.  If  the  Regiment  had  been  rest- 
less before,  the  second  and  third  Battalions  were  doubly  so 
after  they  had  seen  four  companies  of  their  comrades  go  away. 

But  they  had  not  long  to  wait.  On  the  night  of  October 
29th,  the  America  (formerly  the  Amerika  of  the  Hamburg- 
American  line)  pulled  out  of  New  York  Harbor.  There  was 
no  khaki  on  her  decks ;  the  only  figures  to  be  seen  were  sailors 
and  deck-hands.  But  as  soon  as  the  vessel  was  out  of  range  of 
spying  Teutonic  eyes,  soldiers  poured  out  of  every  hatchway. 
And  as  they  thronged  the  deck-space  available  and  looked  their 
last  for  a  long  time  at  the  lights  along  the  fast  receding  shore, 
they  showed  a  contentment,  a  mirth  that  amazed  the  crew, 
long  accustomed  to  transporting  troops. 

"What's  the  matter  with  you  fellows?"  asked  one  sailor. 
"Ain't  you  sorry  to  be  leaving  your  homes?  Didn't  you  ever 
hear  there  was  such  things  as  submarines?"  He  had  helped 
carry  over  all  sort  of  soldiers,  he  said.  Regulars,  Marines  and 
Guardsmen,  but  he  had  never  before  seen  passengers  so  seem- 
ingly indifferent  to  the  grief  of  leavetaking  and  the  perils  of 
the  wartime  sea.     He  couldn't  understand  it. 

He  might  have  been  able  to  understand  it  if  he  had  read 
Chesteron's  "Ballad  of  the  White  Horse."  For  in  that  wise 
poem  is  an  explanation  of  the  psychology  of  the  69th  New 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  339 

York,  an  explanation  of  the  singular  phenomenon  of  soldiers 
leaving  their  dear  ones  and  setting  out  over  menacing  seas  to 
desperate  battle  in  a  strange  land  as  merrily  as  if  they  were 
planning  merely  an  evening  at  Coney  Island.  Chesterton 
wrote : 

"For  the   great   Gaels  of   Ireland 
Are  the  men  that  God  made  mad 
For  all  their  wars  are  merry 
And  all  their  songs  are  sad." 

II 

The  First  Battalion's  voyage  to  France  was  more  interest- 
ing than  that  of  the  main  body  of  the  regiment  or  of  Com- 
panies L  and  M,  who  followed  them  in  a  few  days.  Sailing 
from  Montreal  on  the  Tunisian  at  8  on  the  morning  of  October 
27th,  they  landed  at  Liverpool,  England,  on  November  10. 
There  they  entrained  for  Southhampton,  reaching  that  city 
late  in  the  night.  In  the  night  of  the  nth  they  crossed  the 
English  Channel  to  Havre,  and  after  a  few  hours'  rest  they 
were  packed  into  open  box-cars  for  their  cold  joui'ney  across 
France.     They  detrained  at  Sauvoy  on  November  15. 

The  voyage  of  the  good  ship  America  was  made  over  a 
sea  so  glassy-smooth  that  sea-sickness  was  an  impossibility. 
The  boat-drills,  the  rules  against  smoking  or  showing  lights 
on  deck  at  night  and  the  constant  watch  for  submarines  (a 
work  which  was  put  wholly  in  the  hands  of  the  69th  Regi- 
ment, and  executed  by  them  with  unflagging  devotion)  ser\^ed 
to  remind  the  men  that,  peaceful  as  the  blue  water  looked,  they 
were  actually  in  the  war  already. 

The  discomforts  of  a  crowded  ship  could  not  daunt  the 
spirits  of  the  men  of  the  69th.  The  dark  holes  far  below  the 
water-level  in  which  they  were  tightly  packed  rang  with  song 
and  laughter  every  night  until  taps  sounded.  There  were  con- 
certs on  deck  and  in  the  mess-room  every  night,  except  when 
the  ship's  course  was  through  the  danger  zone  and  silence  was 
enforced.  If  there  is  left  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean  a  mermaid 
who  cannot  now  sing  "Over  There,"  "Goodbye  Broadway, 
Hello  France,"  "Mother  Alachree."  and  "New  York  Town," 
it  is  not  the  fault  of  the  69th  New  York. 


340  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

And  yet  mirth  was  not  the  sole  occupation  of  these  soldiers, 
exhilarated  as  they  were  by  the  prospects  of  battle.  During 
the  day,  one  could  find  little  groups  gathered  on  hatchways 
and  in  corners,  studying,  from  little  manuals  they  had  bought, 
such  subjects  as  the  new  bayonet  work  and  grenade  throw- 
ing. The  talk  of  the  men  was  very  seldom  of  the  homes 
and  friends  they  had  left  behind,  it  was  nearly  always  of  the 
prospect  of  battle.  They  talked  of  what  front  they  might  be 
expected  to  hold,  with  what  troops  they  might  be  trained,  and, 
above  all,  of  how  soon  they  were  to  go  into  action.  They 
discussed  such  methods  and  instruments  of  modern  warfare  as 
they  knew  with  the  keen  interest  of  those  who  are  soldiers 
by  their  own  choice. 

Those  who  do  not  know  the  69th  Regiment  would  have  been 
puzzled  by  the  spectacle  presented  by  the  main  deck  amidships 
every  afternoon  and  evening.  There  could  be  seen  a  line  of 
soldiers,  as  long  as  the  mess-line,  waiting  their  turn  to  go  to 
confession  to  the  Regimental  Chaplain,  Father  Francis  P. 
Duffy.  And  every  morning — not  on  Sundays  alone — there 
was  a  crowd  at  the  same  spot,  where,  on  an  altar  resting  on 
two  nail  kegs.  Father  Duffy  said  Mass. 

The  voyage  passed  without  any  sight  of  hostile  sea  or  air- 
craft, and  after  two  weeks  the  America  came  to  anchor  in 
the  beautiful  harbor  of  Brest.  That  is,  it  seemed  a  beautiful 
harbor  at  first,  with  its  long  white  quay  and  its  miles  of  dark 
green  shore  picked  out  with  venerable  gray  stone  buildings. 
But  as  day  succeeded  day  with  nothing  for  the  soldiers  to 
do  but  tramp  the  decks  and  yearn  for  the  feel  of  sod  under 
their  hobnails,  the  view  began  to  lose  some  of  its  beauty. 
There  were  two  weeks  on  the  open  sea — these  soon  passed. 
But  the  week  in  Brest  Harbor,  in  tantalizing  sight  of  land, 
separated  by  only  half  a  mile  of  green  evil-smelling  stagnation 
from  shops  and  cafes  and  homes — that  was  cru-el  and  unusual 
punishment. 

When,  after  six  days  a  detail  for  the  hard  work  of  loading" 
freight  cars  was  formed,  every  man  in  the  regiment  volun- 
teered— and  this  sort  of  a  detail  usually  is  eagerly  avoided. 
The  volunteers  who  were  accepted  had  little  to  reward  them 
except  the  pleasure  of  being  upon  comparatively  dry  land. 
They  were  given  no  chance  to  taste  the  delights  of  the  seaside 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  341 

city.  When  their  task  of  unloading  and  loading  baggage  was 
finished,  they  and  the  rest  of  their  shipmates  learned  what 
"Hommes  36-40,  Chevaux  8"  meant.  From  40  to  50  men 
entered  the  waiting  box-cars,  with  hard  tack  and  canned  corn- 
beef  (Corn  Willie)  to  feed  them,  and  their  own  blankets  to 
protect  them  from  the  hardness  of  the  floors  and  the  cold 
blasts  that  swept  in  at  the  open  sides. 

Three  days  and  three  nights  of  such  travelling  as  no  soldier 
of  the  69th  can  ever  forget,  and  they  were  at  the  village  of 
Sauvoy,  in  the  Department  of  Meuse.  From  this  point  a  hike 
of  some  two  hours  brought  them  to  the  tiny  village  of  Naives- 
en-Blois.  Here  was  to  be  the  new  home  of  Regimental  Head- 
quarters, Headquarters  Company.  Supply  Company  and  Com- 
pany B.  The  other  companies  (including  those  of  the  First 
Battalion,  which  had  arrived  in  the  district  on  the  fifteenth 
of  the  month)  were  quartered  in  the  nearby  villages  of 
Sauvoy,  Bovee,  Vacon,  Broussey  and  Villeroi. 

The  Regiment  was  put  not  in  barracks,  but  in  billets.  Now 
billets,  to  those  of  the  men  who  had  done  guard  duty  in  upper 
New  York  State  during  the  previous  Spring,  meant  comfort- 
able bedrooms,  buckwheat  cakes  with  syrup  for  breakfast,  and 
the  society  of  good  natured  farming  people.  But  billeting  in 
the  European  sense  of  the  term,  meant  something  different,, 
as  they  soon  found  out.  It  meant  that  certain  householders^ 
in  return  for  the  payment  of  a  few  sous  per  man  per  twenty- 
four  hours,  were  obliged  to  allow  soldiers  to  sleep  in  their 
stables,  barns  or  other  outhouses.  They  were  not  obliged  to- 
furnish  any  food,  light  or  heat.  They  were  not  obliged  even 
to  mend  the  roofs  or  walls  of  the  shelters.  Straw  for  filling 
bedsacks  was  furnished  to  the  soldiers,  and  they  were  fairly 
launched  on  their  first  winter  in  France. 

It  was  a  winter  of  unprecedented  severity.  A  freezing  wind 
blew  through  the  great  holes  in  the  tumble-down  sheds  where 
the  men  slept,  covering  them,  night  after  night,  with  snow. 
They  learned  many  soldierly  things.  How  to  make  blouse 
and  overcoat  supplement  the  thin  army  blankets,  for  instance^ 
How  to  keep  shoes  from  freezing  in  the  night  by  sleeping  on 
them.  How  to  dress  and  undress  in  the  dark — for  lamps 
were  unknown  and  candles  forbidden. 

These  things  the  scldiers  taught  themselves,  or  were  taught 


342  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

by  circumstances  during  their  stay  in  Naives-en-Blois  and  en- 
virons. Their  work  consisted  of  close  order  drill,  guard  duty, 
and  the  thorough  and  much  needed  policing  of  the  ancient  vil- 
lage street. 

Now,  Naives  was  near  the  front — so  near  that  the  guns 
could  clearly  be  heard  when  the  wind  blew  in  the  right  direc- 
tion. This  was  cheering  for  the  men,  but  as  there  were  in- 
dications of  a  strengthening  of  the  German  lines  at  this  point, 
with  a  possible  view  to  an  offensive,  it  was  necessary  to  use 
the  district  for  troops  whose  training  had  been  completed ; 
and,  according  to  the  new  European  standards,  that  of  the 
69th  had  not  yet  begun.  So  it  was  necessary  for  the  Regi- 
ment— indeed,  for  the  whole  42nd  Division,  which  then  had  its 
headquarters  in  the  nearby  city  of  Vaucouleurs — to  give  place 
to  seasoned  French  troops.  So  the  men  made  their  packs, 
the  wagons  were  loaded,  and  the  Regiment  changed  station 
from  the  4th  to  the  5th  area. 

After  two  days  of  hiking  (very  easy  hiking  it  seemed,  in  the 
light  of  later  experiences)  the  Regiment  arrived,  on  December 
13,  in  the  historic  town  of  Grand.  Here,  centuries  before,  the 
conquering  Romans  had  encamped,  one  hundred  thousand 
strong.  The  ruins  of  the  mighty  ampitheatre  that  they  built 
still  stands,  and  the  tower  of  the  great  church  was  once  part 
of  a  fort.  It  was  Caesar  himself  who  planned  the  broad  roads 
on  which  our  Regiment  drilled,  and  Caesar's  soldiers  who 
made  them.  In  this  venerable  church  Father  Duffy  said  mid- 
night Mass  on  Christmas,  and  all  the  town  came  to  see  these 
strange,  gentle,  brave,  mirthful,  pious  American  soldiers,  who, 
coming  from  a  new  land  to  fight  for  France,  practiced  France's 
ancient  faith  with  such  devotion.  The  Regimental  colors  were 
in  the  chancel,  flanked  by  the  tricolor.  The  69th  band  was 
present,  and  some  French  soldier-violinists.  A  choir  of 
French  women  sang  hymns  in  their  own  language,  the  Ameri- 
can soldiers  sang  a  few  in  English,  and  French  and  American 
joined  in  the  universal  Latin  of  "Venite,  Adoremus  Domin- 
um."  It  was  a  memorable  Midnight  Mass — likely  to  be  rem- 
bered  longer  even  than  tiiat  which  Father  Duffy  had  said  on 
the  Mexican  Border  just  a  year  previous,  which  troops  for 
fifty  miles  around  had  crossed  the  prairies  to  attend. 

Now  it  was  considered  advisable  for  the  Division  to  pro- 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  343 

cccd  to  tlie  6tli  area.  This  meant  a  hike  of  some  four  days 
and  ni<^hts.  Accordingly,  at  8  on  the  morning  of  December 
26th,  the  Regiment  passed  through  the  main  street  of  Grand 
and  out  over  the  ancient  Roman  road. 

This  hike  has  become  so  famous — or  so  infamous — because 
of  the  undeniable  sufferings  of  those  who  took  part  in  it  that  it 
nccils  no  dctailcti  description  here.  It  must  by  any  impartial 
historian  be  admitted  that  during  it  the  men  of  the  69th  ivcgi- 
ment  were  insufficiently  fed  and  shod,  that  they  endured  great 
and  unnecessary  pains  and  privations.  It  must  also  be  admitted 
that  they  bore  these  trials  with  a  cheerfulness  which  amazed 
the  P'rench  civilians  through  whose  villages  they  passed,  ac- 
customed as  were  these  people  to  soldiers  of  almost  every 
human  race.  They  would  crush  their  bleeding  feet  into  their 
frozen,  broken-soled  hobnails  of  a  black  morning,  and  break- 
fastless  start  out,  with  a  song  on  their  lips,  to  climb  the  foot- 
hills of  the  Vosgcs  Mountains  through  the  heart  of  a  blizzard. 
At  noon  (shifting  their  feet  about  to  keep  the  blood  moving) 
they  would  (if  it  was  one  of  the  lucky  days)  have  a  slice  of 
bread  or  two  pieces  of  hardtack  for  noon  mess.  At  night  they 
would  have  a  sleep  instead  of  supper.  But  they  were  never 
dispirited ;  they  were  never  too  cold,  too  hungry  or  too  weary 
to  sing  or  to  teach  the  innocent  French  villagers  strange  bits 
of  New  York  slang. 

No  man  in  the  69th  Regiment  "fell  out"  during  that  terrible 
hike.  But  many  fell  down.  That  is,  no  one,  because  of  heart- 
breaking weariness,  or  faintness  or  lameness  went  to  the  road- 
side anrl  waited  for  the  ambulance  to  pick  him  up.  Those  who 
finished  the  journey  in  ambulances  or  trucks  did  so  because 
they  had  fallen  senseless  in  the  deep  snow,  unable  to  speak  or 
move.  And  wherever  the  Regiment  passed  there  were  bloody 
tracks  in  the  white  roadway. 

"That  hike  made  Napoleon's  retreat  from  Moscow  look 
like  a  Tlflh  Avenue  parade,"  said  one  of  the  medical  officers 
serving  during  this  period.  And  many  an  observer  compared 
the  Regiment  to  Washington's  foot-sore  soldiers  at  Valley 
Forge.  It  was  only  the  indomitable  spirit  of  the  Irish  Amer- 
ican fighting  man  that  kept  the  Regiment  afoot  through  those 
four  tragic  days. 

The  Regiment  that  arrived  in  Longeau  on  the  afternoon  of 


344  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

December  29th  looked  different  from  the  Regiment  that  had 
left  Grand  four  days  before.  -To  judge  them  by  their  gait 
and  their  faces,  the  men  had  aged  twenty  years.  But  their 
hearts  were  unchanged.  As  they  stood  in  the  deep  snow, 
the  ice-crusted  packs  still  on  their  bruised  shoulders,  they  had 
a  laughing  word  for  every  pretty  face  at  a  Longeau  window. 
The  weary  bandsmen  started  a  defiant  air,  and  the  Regiment 
joined  in  with  a  roar.  The  song  was  "The  Good  Old  Sum- 
mertime." 

Ill 

Longeau,  which  with  the  surrounding  villages  constituted 
the  Regiment's  new  home,  is  a  small  farming  town  in  the 
Haute  Marne  District.  Unlike  those  of  Naives,  its  houses  are 
strongly  built  and  in  excellent  preservation,  and  the  billets  in 
which  (awaiting  the  completion  of  barracks)  the  troops  were 
stationed  were  dry,  warm  and  comfortable.  As  soon  as 
possible,  the  Regiment  moved  into  the  new  barracks  built  in 
the  outskirts  of  Longeau  and  nearby  villages,  and  was  thus 
more  nearly  consolidated  than  it  had  previously  been  since  its 
arrival  in  France. 

In  Longeau,  the  69th  Regiment  was  destined  to  receive 
much  more  practical  training  for  the  trenches  than  it  had  re- 
ceived in  Camp  Mills,  Naives  or  Grand.  These  last  two  towns 
had  really  been  merely  stopping  places,  Longeau  was  a  train- 
ing camp.  The  most  important  event  of  the  stay  in  Longeau 
was  the  advent  of  Colonel  John  W.  Barker.  Colonel  Hine  was 
withdrawn  from  his  post  with  the  regiment  early  in  January, 
in  order  that  he  might  take  part  in  the  transportation  work 
for  which  he  was  especially  fitted.  He  was  succeeded  on  Jan- 
uary I2th  by  Colonel  John  W.  Barker,  National  Army.  Col- 
onel Barker  was  an  up-state  New  Yorker,  who  graduated  from 
West  Point  in  the  class  of  '09.  He  had  served  in  the  Regular 
Infantry  ever  since  in  Cuba,  the  Philippines  and  on  the  Mexi- 
can Border.  He  saw  considerable  active  service  against  the 
Indians,  after  taking  part  in  almost  the  last  of  the  Indian  fight 
at  Leach  Creek,  Minnesota. 

Four  years  ago,  he  was  recommended  by  his  arm  of  the 
service  to  represent  the  Infantry  for  one  year's  duty  with  a 
French  Infantry  Regiment.  He  was  in  France  on  this  duty 
when  the  great  war  broke  out,  and  remained  as  a  member  of 


HISTORICAL  ArPENDIX  345 

our  military  organization  until  the  arrival  of  the  American 
Expeditionary  Forces.  Then  he  joined  the  staff  of  the  Com- 
mander in  Chief  as  General  Staff  Officer,  5th  Section.  He 
served  General  Headquarters  in  this  capacity  until  personally 
selected  by  the  Commander  in  Chief  to  command  the  165th 
Infantry. 

Now  the  regiment  began  to  take  the  form  of  a  modern 
fighting  organization.  It  was  Colonel  Barker's  task  to  bring 
it  into  conformation  with  the  new  Tables  of  Organization, 
and  to  this  task  the  best  energies  of  himself  and  his  staff  were 
immediately  devoted. 

The  specialized  platoons  (pioneers,  trench  mortar,  one 
pound  cannon)  were  now  organized  and  intensively  trained. 
Competent  enlisted  men  from  these  platoons  were  sent  to  the 
schools  newly  established  by  General  Headquarters  and  given 
the  advantage  of  instruction  by  officers  who  had  gained  their 
knowledge  of  the  subjects  in  actual  warfare  conditions.  Hand 
grenades  were  supplied,  and  every  man  taught  their  effective 
use.  Steel  helmets  now  replaced  the  historic  felt  campaign 
hats.  To  every  man  were  issued  two  gas  masks,  one  French 
gas  mask  and  one  English  box  respirator.  By  means  of  con- 
stant drill  in  the  rapid  adjustment  of  these  masks,  under  the 
direction  of  an  officer  who  had  specialized  in  the  subject,  the 
men  acquired  a  proficiency  in  their  use  which  saved  many  a 
life  in  the  Luncville  and  Baccarat  Sectors  and  during  the  weeks 
of  desperate  fighting  on  the  banks  of  the  Suippes  and  tlie 
Marne. 

It  was  during  the  stay  in  Longeau  that  the  69th  Regiment 
organized  its  Intelligence  Section,  the  first  in  'the  42nd  Di- 
vision. Under  the  direction  of  the  Regimental  Intelligence 
Officer,  Lieutenant  Basil  B.  Elmer,  U.  S.  R.,  there  was  or- 
ganized and  trained  a  group  of  scouts,  observers,  map-makers 
and  snipers  so  expert  in  detecting  and  hindering  the  move- 
ments of  the  enemy  that  they  were  several  times,  in  the  course 
of  the  action  that  came  later,  asked  to  attach  themselves  per- 
manently to  the  Headquarters  of  the  42nd  Division,  in  order 
that  they  might  serve  as  instructors  to  the  other  regimental 
intelligence  sections. 

There  were  several  changes  in  the  personnel  of  the  Regi- 
ment's administrative   staff.     Lieutenant   Colonel   Reed   had 


346  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

been  selected  for  Staff  College,  and  the  Regiment  never  got 
him  back.  Captain  William  Doyle,  who  had  served  as  Regi- 
mental Adjutant  in  Camp  Mills,  had  been  relieved  while  the 
regiment  was  in  Naives-en-Blois,  and  his  place  taken  by  Cap- 
tain Alexander  E.  Anderson,  long  in  command  of  Company 
E.  Now  Captain  Anderson  was  relieved  as  Adjutant  and 
placed  in  command  of  Headquarters  Company.  Its  former 
commander,  Captain  Walter  E.  Powers,  for  several  years  Ad- 
jutant of  the  Regiment,  went  to  the  Headquarters  of  the  42nd 
Division,  leaving  an  enviable  record  for  absolute  efficiency  in 
company  and  regimental  administration.  His  abilities  were 
soon  recognized  by  his  commission  as  Major  and  appointment 
as  Divisional  Adjutant.  Captain  Doyle  was  attached  to  Bri- 
gade Pleadquarters.  Captain  Anderson's  work  was  taken  over 
by  Lieutenant  William  F.  McKenna,  who  was  appointed  Act- 
ing Adjutant,  an  office  which  he  had  filled  during  part  of  the 
Border  campaign. 

The  training  of  officers  and  men  never  flagged  while  the 
Regiment  was  stationed  in  Longeau.  Battalion  and  company 
commanders,  Lieutenants  and  enlisted  men  were  sent  for 
brief  periods  to  the  special  schools  instituted  by  General  Head- 
quarters for  their  benefit,  and  on  their  return  imparted  to 
others  the  knowledge  they  had  gained.  There  were  lectures 
and  quizzes  every  evening  in  the  barracks,  supplementary  to 
the  instruction  received  every  morning  and  afternoon  in  the 
drill  field  and  on  the  range.  A  number  of  American  officers 
who  had  seen  service  at  the  front  were  now  attached  to  the 
Regiment,  and  their  first  hand  information  gave  new  actuality 
to  the  daily  work. 

The  training  of  the  Regiment  for  the  action  in  which  they 
were  soon  to  take  part  received  new  and  strong  impetus  dur- 
ing the  month  of  February  by  the  arrival  in  camp  of  the  32nd 
Battalion  of  Chasseurs.  These  famous  French  soldiers,  who 
had  been  in  violent  action  ever  since  1914,  proved  to  be  the 
most  useful  instructors  for  the  men  of  the  69th.  On  the 
range  and  during  the  long  hours  of  grenade  throwing  and  open 
and  trench  warfare  practice,  their  instruction,  example  and 
companionship  was  a  constant  incentive  to  the  American  sol- 
diers. And  it  was  a  proud  day  for  the  69th  Regiment  when 
its  soldiers  perceived  that  in  rifle  markmanship  and  in  grenade 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  {34-7 

tlirowing  they  had  succeeded  in  proving  their  superiority  to 
their  veteran  instructors. 

From  I-'ebruary  7th  to  February  13th  the  Regiment  took 
part  in  manoeuvres  in  which  it  was  opposed  by  the  i66th  In- 
fantry. These  manoeuvres  took  place  in  the  hilly  country 
around  Longeau  and  had  as  their  ultimate  objective  the  seizure 
and  holding  of  the  town  of  Brennes.  This  difficult  strategic 
task  was  eventually  accomplished. 

Now  the  desire  of  the  men  for  immediate  participation  in 
the  action,  the  lure  of  which  had  drawn  them  across  the  ocean, 
was  so  strong  as  to  amount  to  an  obsession.  It  was  evident 
to  any  competent  observer  that  the  whole  Division  was  ready 
to  render  valuable  service,  as  thoroughly  trained  as  any  unit 
in  the  American  contingent.  This  was  evidently  the  opinion 
of  those  who  directed  the  movement  of  American  troops,  for 
on  February  i6th,  17th  and  i8th  the  Regiment  marched  to 
Langres,  under  orders  to  entrain  for  the  city  of  Luneville, 
in  the  Department  of  Aleurthe-et-Moselle,  for  training  with 
French  troops  in  the  line — that  is,  for  actual  duty  in  the 
trenches. 

Luneville  was  the  largest  town  in  which  the  Regiment  had 
been  stationed  since  its  arrival  in  France.  Some  of  the  com- 
panies were  put  in  billets,  and  some  in  the  Stanislas  Barracks, 
a  magnificent  stone  building  in  the  center  of  the  town.  Regi- 
mental Headquarters  was  established  in  the  Stanislas  Palace, 
a  building  which  had  previously  housed  the  Administrative 
staffs  of  some  of  the  French  regiments  who  since  1914  had 
done  brilliant  work  in  retarding  the  German  advance. 

Now  the  Regiment  was  placed  under  the  tactical  orders  of 
the  General  commanding  the  164th  Division  of  the  French 
Army,  the  Division  then  occupying  what  was  known  as  the 
Luneville  Sector.  On  February  21st,  the  ist  and  2nd  Battal- 
ions, Headquarters  Company  and  Machine  Gun  Company 
paraded  in  the  central  square  of  Luneville  and  were  reviewed 
by  Major  General  Bassiliere,  then  commander  of  the  17th 
French  Army  Corps.  A  few  days  later,  the  Regiment  was 
made  happy  by  learning  that  orders  to  go  to  the  front  had 
been  received.  On  February  27th  and  28th  respectively,  Com- 
panies D  and   B   marched  to  their  posts   in  the   front   line 


848  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

trenches,  relieving  companies  of  the  15th  Group  of  Chasseurs 
of  the  French  Army. 

And  now  came  a  chapter  in  the  history  of  the  69th  Regi- 
ment which  blotted  out  from  the  minds  of  officers  and  men 
all  the  hard  work  of  the  Camp  Mills  training  period,  all  the 
privations  and  discomforts  of  the  ocean  trip  and  the  journey 
across  blizzard-beleagured  France.  The  69th  was  actually  in 
the  fighting — it  was  called  "a.  period  of  training  in  the 
trenches,"  but  it  was  no  time  of  sham-battles  and  manoeuvres. 
It  was,  in  fact,  an  initiation  into  battle,  by  way  of  what  was 
(up  to  the  time  of  the  42nd  Division's  entry  into  it)  a  quiet 
sector. 

A  "quiet  sector"  is  one  in  which  the  German  and  French 
lines  are  separated  from  each  other  by  a  considerable  distance 
• — sometimes  as  much  as  five  kilometers — in  which  there  is  no 
immediate  objective  for  which  the  troops  on  either  side  are 
striving,  in  which,  finally,  shots  are  seldom  fired,  the  opposing 
forces  being  content  merely  to  hold  their  trenches  almost 
undisturbed.  These  are  also  termed  "rest  sectors,"  and  the 
task  of  holding  them  is  given  either  to  troops  wearied  by 
participation  in  great  battles  or  to  troops  fresh  from  the  drill 
field  and  lacking  in  experience  in  actual  warfare. 

Nothing  could  have  been  more  idyllic  than  the  Rouge- 
Bouquet-Chaussailles  Subsector  of  the  Luneville  Sector  when 
Company  D  marched  to  its  strong  point  before  dawn  on  the 
morning  of  February  27th.  The  subsector  is  heavily  wooded 
and  alm.ost  clear  of  underbrush.  As  the  company  marched  up 
the  hill  through  groves  of  birch,  pine,  spruce,  and  fir,  and  saw 
to  right  and  left  little  summer  houses,  benches,  tables  and 
dug-out  entrances  elaborately  decorated  with  rustic  woodwork 
they  were  rather  shocked  by  the  idyllic  beauty  of  what  they 
saw.  Not  for  service  in  such  a  recreation  park  had  they 
crossed  the  seas.  Where  were  the  bursting  shells,  where  was 
the  liquid  fire,  where  were  the  bayonets  of  the  charging 
Boches  ?  This  series  of  outposts  joined  by  little  ditches  seemed 
at  first  too  much  like  Central  Park  to  satisfy  the  battle-hungry 
soldiers  of  the  69th. 

The  impression  of  absolute  peacefulness  was  further  em- 
phasized in  the  course  of  a  thorough  reconnaissance  of  the 
subsector  made  on  the  morning  of  the  27th  by  the  Regiment- 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  349 

al  Intelligence  Section.  They  stepped  across  a  ditch  and 
learned  that  they  had  passed  the  front  line  trenches — had  gone 
"over  the  top."  They  wandered  about  what  seemed  to  be  a 
deserted  pasture  and  learned  that  they  were  in  No  Man's 
Land. 

But  this  tranquillity  was  not  long  to  endure.  The  "Fight- 
ing Irish"  lived  up  to  their  reputation — they  "started  some- 
thing" at  once.  Rifles  were  cracking  merrily  before  Company 
D's  men  had  been  at  their  posts  for  half  an  hour.  And  by 
dusk  on  the  evening  of  the  27th,  Corporal  Arthur  Trayer  and 
Private  John  Lyons  of  Company  D  had  earned  the  distinction 
of  being  the  first  soldiers  of  the  Regiment  to  be  wounded.  A 
high  explosive  shell  burst  on  striking  the  roof  of  a  shack 
in  which  they  were  resting,  and  the  fragments  wounded  them 
— not  seriously,  but  enough  to  warrant  sending  them  to  a  hos- 
pital for  a  few  weeks  and  later  awarding  them  the  coveted 
wound  chevrons. 

By  the  night  of  the  27th  the  Chaussaille-Rouge  Bouquet 
Subsector  had  lost  much  of  its  reputation  for  quietness.  The 
Germans  may  not  have  known  as  yet  that  Americans  were  in 
the  trenches  opposite  them,  but  they  knew  at  any  rate  that 
some  new  and  aggressive  unit  had  taken  over  the  line,  and 
they  felt  in  duty  bound  to  show  that  they  were  not  in  the 
trenches  entirely  for  a  rest  cure.     So  the  fight  was  on. 

Regimental  Headquarters  took  over  the  Regimental  Post  of 
Command  at  Arbre  Haut  on  March  3rd.  Company  A  occupied 
Strong  Point  Rouge  Bouquet  from  March  ist  to  March  7th, 
Company  E  from  March  7th  to  13th,  Company  L  from 
March  13th  to  ]\Iarch  21st,  Company  B  occupied  Strong 
Point  Chaussailles  from  March  ist  to  March  6th,  Company 
H  from  March  6th  to  March  12th,  Company  K  from  ]\Iarch 
1 2th  to  March  22nd.  Company  D  occupied  Strong  Point  Sor- 
biers  from  March  ist  to  March  5th,  Company  F  from  March 
5th  to  March  nth,  Company  I  from  March  nth  to  March 
17th,  Company  M  from  March  17th  to  March  22nd. 

There  were  many  minor  casualties  during  the  early  part  of 
this  period,  but  nothing  of  a  really  tragic  nature  occurred  until 
March  7th.  Then  came  a  calamity  which  would  have  broken 
the  morale  of  any  regiment  less  high-spirited  than  this,  so  sud- 
den was  it  and  so   lamentable. 


350  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

On  that  unforgettable  Wednesday,  all  was  quiet  as  if  there 
were  no  war  until  exactly  3.20  in  the  afternoon.  Then  the 
enemy  started  a  barrage  of  minnewerfer  shells.  Interspersed 
with  77s  they  fell  steadily  and  thick  for  about  an  hour.  One 
shell  fell  directly  on  the  roof  of  a  dug-out  in  Rocroi — an 
old  dug-out,  built  by  the  French  four  years  before.  In  it  were 
21  men  and  one  officer — ist  Lieutenant  John  A.  Norman  of 
Company  E.  All  were  buried  in  the  broken  earth  and  beams, 
and  some  were  at  once  killed.  Two  men  were  sitting  on  the 
edge  of  the  upper  bunk  in  one  of  the  rooms — a  falling  beam 
crushed  the  head  of  one  and  left  the  other  uninjured. 

At  once  a  working  party  was  organized  and  began  to  dig 
the  soldiers  from  their  living  grave.  There  was  bombardment 
after  bombardment,  but  the  men  kept  at  work,  and  eventually 
they  dug  out  two  men  alive  and  five  dead.  There  were  living 
men  down  in  that  pit — their  voices  could  be  heard,  and  they 
were  struggling  toward  the  light.  Lieutenant  Norman  could  be 
heard  encouraging  them  and  guiding  the  efforts  of  their 
bruised  and  weary  hands  and  feet.  Several  times  they  were 
at  the  surface  and  willing  hands  were  out-stretched  to  draw 
them  to  safety — when  well-aimed  shells  plunged  them  down 
again  into  that  place  of  death.  At  last,  after  almost  super- 
human efforts  on  the  part  of  men  from  Company  E  and 
from  the  pioneer  platoon  of  Headquarters  Company,  after 
deeds  of  heroism,  brilliant  but  unavailing,  the  work  was  dis- 
continued. The  bodies  of  fourteen  men  and  one  officer  still  lay 
in  that  ruined  dug-out — it  was  unwise,  in  view  of  the  constant 
bombardment  of  it,  to  risk  the  lives  of  more  men  in  digging 
for  them.  So  a  tablet  was  engraved  and  erected  above  the 
mound,  the  last  rites  of  the  church  were  celebrated  by  Father 
Duffy,  and  the  place  where  the  men  had  fought  and  died  be- 
came their  grave. 

After  IMarch  7th,  no  one  called  the  Rouge  Bouquet-Chaus- 
sailles  Sector  a  rest  park,  no  one  complained  that  it  was  too 
peaceful  to  make  them  know  they  were  at  war.  Not  only  the 
front  line  sector  but  the  reserve  position  at  Grand  Taille  and 
the  road  leading  from  the  Battalion  Post  of  Command  at 
Rouge  Bouquet  to  Regimental  Headquarters  at  Arbre  Haut 
were  bombarded  every  day.  But  the  Regiment  held  the  Hne 
with  undiminished  zeal,  and  gave  the  enemy  an  experience 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  851 

novel  in  this  sector  in  the  shape  of  a  Coup  de  Main  on  the 
night  of  March  20th.  Of  this  adventure,  the  first  of  many  of 
the  kind  in  which  the  regiment  v^as  to  take  part,  a  brief,  accu- 
rate account  is  to  be  found  in  the  citation  of  its  leader,  ist 
Lieutenant  Henry  A.  Bootz,  (later  Captain  of  Company  C), 
by  the  Seventh  French  Army  Corps. 

His  citation  reads :  "In  the  course  of  a  raid,  led  a  combat 
group  into  the  enemy's  lines,  going  beyond  the  objective  as- 
signed, and  recommenced  the  same  operation  eight  hours  later, 
giving  his  men  an  example  of  the  most  audacious  bravery. 
Returned  to  our  lines  carrying  one  of  his  men  severely  M^ound- 
ed." 

It  is  a  matter  of  no  military  importance  but  of  deep  in- 
terest to  everyone  who  sympathizes  with  the  69th  Regiment 
and  knows  its  history  and  traditions,  that  when  the  raiding 
party  marched  up  past  Regimental  Headquarters  on  their  way 
to  the  trenches,  there  fluttered  from  the  bayonet  of  one  of  the 
men  a  flag — a  green  flag  marked  in  gold  with  the  harp  that 
has  for  centuries  been  Ireland's  emblem — the  harp  without 
the  crown — and  inscribed  "Erin  Go  Bragh !"  This  flag  had 
been  given  to  Sergeant  Evers  of  the  Band  and  by  a  stranger — 
an  old  woman  who  burst  through  the  great  crowd  that  lined 
the  streets  when  the  Regiment  marched  from  the  armory  to 
the  dock  on  their  journey  to  Camp  Mills  and,  crying  and 
laughing  at  the  same  time,  thrust  it  into  his  hands.  The  flag 
went  "over  the  top"  twice  that  night,  and  for  memory's  sake 
the  name  "Rouge  Bouquet"  was  embroidered  on  it.  Later, 
the  embroidered  names  became  so  numerous  that  the  design 
of  the  flag  almost  disappeared.  Who  the  woman  was  who 
gave  the  Regiment  this  appropriate  tribute  is  unknown.  Per- 
haps it  was  Kathleen  in  Houlihan  herself. 

It  was  natural  that  this  brilliant  and  utterly  unexpected 
Coup  de  Main  should  have  the  effect  of  irritating  our  coun- 
try's enemy.  It  did  so,  and  the  result  was  a  dose  of  "Schreck- 
lichkeit"  which  at  first  threatened  to  prove  more  serious  than 
the  fatal  bombardment  of  the  dug-out  in  Rouge  Bouquet.  It 
came  on  the  days  of  the  raid — March  20th  and  March  21st. 
The  French  soldiers  had  been  inclined  to  make  light  of  the  69th 
Regiment's  elaborate  precautions  against  gas-attacks,  of  the 
constant  wearing  of  the  French  gas-mask  and  the  English  box- 


352  HISTORICAL  APPENDIX 

respirator  at  the  alert  position  (the  respirator  bound  across 
the  soldier's  chest  ready  for  immediate  use)  when  in  the 
trenches.  The  Germans,  they  said,  could  not  send  cloud  or 
projector  gas  through  Rocroi  Woods,  and  their  last  gas  shell 
attack  had  been  made  three  years  before.  Why  take  such 
precautions   against  an   improbable   danger? 

But  the  French  officers  and  men  saw  the  wisdom  of  the 
Regiment's  precautionary  measures  after  March  20th  and  21st, 
For  on  these  dates  occurred  a  gas-attack  of  magnitude  un- 
precedented in  this  sector,  in  which  the  French  casualties  far 
outnumbered  those  of  the  Americans.  The  gas  sent  over 
in  shells  that  burst  along  the  road  from  Arbre  Haut  to  the 
Battalion  Post  of  Command  and  along  the  trenches  and  out- 
posts from  Chaussailles  to  Rouge  Bouquet  were  filled  with 
mustard-gas,  which  blinded  the  men  and  bit  into  their  flesh, 
and  poisoned  all  blankets,  clothing  and  food  that  was  within 
the  range  of  its  baneful  fumes.  There  were  four  hundred 
casualties  in  the  Regiment  on  those  two  nightmare-like  days — 
four  hundred  men,  that  is,  who  were  taken,  blind  and  suf- 
fering, from  the  fateful  forest  to  the  hospital  in  Luneville  and 
thence  to  Vittel  and  other  larger  centers  for  expert  medical 
treatment.  ]\Iost  of  these  men  were  from  Company  K,  others 
from  Company  M  and  Headquarters  Company.  But  only  two 
men  were  immediately  killed  by  the  gas,  and  of  the  four 
hundred  who  went  to  the  hospital  only  three  died — of  bron- 
cho-pneumonia resulting  from  the  action  of  the  gas  on  their 
lungs.  To  their  careful  training  in  the  use  of  the  gas  mask, 
the  men  owed  the  preservation  of  their  lives  in  an  attack 
which  was  intended  to  destroy  all  of  the  battalion  then  in  the 
line. 

A  volume  could  be  filled  with  a  record  of  the  heroism  dis- 
played by  the  officers  and  men  of  the  69th  Regiment  during 
these  two  days  and  nights  of  violent  bombardment.  The 
French  authorities  overwhelmed  the  Regiment  with  congratu- 
lations and  awards.  And  surely  the  Croix  de  Guerre  never 
shone  upon  breasts  more  worthy  of  it  than  those  of  First 
Lieutenant  George  F.  Patton,  of  the  Sanitary  Detachment, 
who,  standing  in  the  center  of  a  storm  of  mustard-gas,  coolly 
removed  his  mask  in  order  to  give  a  wounded  soldier  the 
benefit  of  his  medical  attention,  or  that  of  First  Lieutenant 


HISTORICAL  APPENDIX  353 

Thomas  Martin  of  Company  K,  who,  when  every  other  officer 
of  liis  company  had  been  taken  away  to  the  hospital,  took  com- 
mand of  the  unit  and  hekl  the  sector  through  forty-eight  hours 
of  almost  incessant  bombardments.  The  French  Division  com- 
mander bestowed  the  Croix  de  Guerre  on  Col.  Barker,  with 
the  following  citation : 

"Commands  a  regiment  noticeable  for  its  discipline  and  fine 
conduct  under  fire.  Has  given  his  troops  an  example  of  con- 
stant activity  and  has  distinguished  himself  especially  on  the 
20th  of  March  by  going  forward  under  a  violent  barrage  fire 
to  assure  himself  of  the  situation  and  of  the  state  of  morale 
of  one  of  his  detachments  starting  on  a  raid  into  the  enemy's 
lines." 


APPENDIX 

NEW  FURLS  ON  REGIMENTAL  STAFF 

LuNEViLLE  Sector,  February  21  to  March  23,  1918. 

Baccarat  Sector,  April  i  to  June  21,  1918. 

EsPERANCE-SouAiN  SECTOR,  July  4  to  July  14,  1918. 

Cham  PAG  ne-Marne  Defensive,  July  15  to  July  18,  1918 
Aisne-Marne  Offensive,  July  25  to  August  3,  1918 

St.  Mihiel  Offensive,  September  12  to  September  16,  1918. 

EssEY  and  Pannes  Sector.    Woevre,  September  17  to  September 
30,  1918. 

Argonne-Meuse  Offensive,  October  13  to  October  31,  1918 

Argonne-Meuse   Offensive  Last   Phase,   November   5,  to   No- 
vember 9,  19 18. 


LOSSES  IN  ACTION 

Killed:  644    Wounded:  2,857.    Total:  3,501. 

Kilometers  gained :  55. 

Headquarters :  83  different  places. 

Number  of  days  in  contact  with  the  enemy :  180. 


355 


356 


APPENDIX 


LIST  OF  DECORATIONS  * 


DISTINGUISHED     SERVICE 
CROSS  WITH  PALM 

Colonel 
William  J.  Donovan 

DISTINGUISHED  SERVICE 
CROSS 

Lieut. -Colonels 

Timothy  J.  Moynahan 
Charles  A.  Dravo 

Majors 
James  A.  McKenna  (Deceased) 
Michael  A.  Kelly 
Thomas  T.  Reilley 
Van  S.  Merle-Smith 

Captains 

Richard  J.   Ryan 
Louis  A.  Stout 
•  First  Lieutenants 
James  B.  IMcIntyre 
William  M.  Spencer 
John  J.  Williams 

Second  Lieutenants 

Oliver  Ames  (Deceased) 

James  S.  D.  Burns    (Deceased) 
John  J.  Burke 
Andrew  Ellett 

Chaplains 
Francis   P.  Duffy 
James  M.  Hanley 
George  R.  Carpentier 

Sergeants 
Co.  C,  Joseph   W.   Burns 
Co.  A,  John  J.  Dennelly 
Co.  D,  Joseph  J.  Lynch 
Co.  C,  Thomas  P.  O'Hagan 
Co.  D,  John  J.   Gribbon 
Co.  B,  Spiros  Thomas 
Co.  H,   Bernard   Finnerty 

(Deceased) 
Co.  H,  Eugene  J.  Sweeney 
Co.  A,  Thomas  J.   Sweeney 
Co.    I,   Michael   A.   Donaldson 
Co.  C,  Thomas  O'Kelly 
Co.  Hq.,  Thomas  E.  Fitzsimmons 


Co.  K,   John  J.    McLoughlin 
Co.  M,    John    McLoughlin 
Co.  M,  G.   Frank  Gardella 

(Deceased) 
Co.  M  G,  John  F.   Flint 
Co.  H,    Martin   J.    Higgins 
Co.  San,  Victor  L.   Eichorn 
Co.  M  G,   Peter  Gillespie 
Co.  K,  Edward  J.  Rooney 
Co.    I,  Edward  T.   Shanahan 
Co.  K,  Herbert  A.  McKenna 
Co.  D,   Richard  W.   O'Neill 
Co.  C,   Michael  Ruane 
Co.  H,  Dudley  Winthrop 
Co.  A,   Martin  Gill 
Co.  A,  Matthew  Kane 
Co.  C,    Archibald    F.    Reilly 
Co.  C,  Harry  C.  Horgan 
Co.  H,   Patrick  Travers 
Co.  C,    William    McCarthy 
Co.  K,   Peter  J.   Crotty 

(Deceased) 
Co.  H,   W^illiam    O'Neill 

(Deceased) 
Co.  C,  Michael  Cooney 
Co.  L,   Michael   Fitzpatrick 
Co.  D,  Michael  J.  McAulift'e 
Corporals 

Co.  C,  Thomas  F.   O'Connor 

(Deceased) 
Co.  M  G,  William  J.  Murphy 
Co.  C,  Frederick  Craven 
Co.  D,  William  P.  White 
Co.  E,  Frederick  Gluck 

(Deceased) 
Co.  K,  Victor  Van  Yorx 
Co.  M,  James  E.  Winestock 
Co.  C,  John   Hammond 
Co.  B,  Matthew  J.  Brennan 
Wagoner  Supply  Co. 

Albert  Richford 
Privates 
Co.  K,  William  J.  Bergen 

(Deceased) 
Co.  G,  Edmund  Riordan 

(Deceased) 


*  After  the  Champagne  fight,  by  request  of  the  French  military 
authorities,  a  number  of  officers  and  men  were  recommended  for 
decoration,  including  Major  Anderson  for  the  Legion  of  Honor.  The 
lists  were  lost  while  going  through  the  French  Army  channels,  but  it 
is  still  hoped  tliat  the  honors  will  be  granted. 


APPENDIX 


357 


Co.  G,  John  McGeary 

(Deceased) 
Co.  M,  Robert  Riggsby 
Co.  D,  Edward  G.  Coxe 

(Deceased) 
Co.  K,  Burr  I'inkle 
Co.  H,    Patrick    Reynolds 

( Deceased) 
Co.  C,  John  Teevan 

DISTINGUISHED     SERVICE 

MEDAL 
Chaplain 

Francis  P.  Duffy 

LEGION  OF  HONOR 

Brigadier    General 

F>ank  R.  McCoy 
Colonel 

William  J.  Donovan 
Lieutenant  Colonel 

Timothy  J.  Moynahan 
Major 

Michael  A.  Kelly 
First  Lieutenant 

William  Maloney 

MEDAILLE   MILITAIRE 

Sergeant 

Co.    I,   Michael  A.  Donaldson 
Corporals 

Co.  A,  Matthew  A.  Kane 

Co.  K,  Burr  Finkle 
Private 

Co.  M,  Robert  Riggsby 

CROCE  DI  GUERRA 
(ITALIAN) 

Colonel 

William  J.  Donovan 
Sergeant 

Co.  C,  Michael  Ruane 

CROIX  DE  GUERRE 

Brigadier  Generals 

Frank   R.    McCoy 

John  W^   Barker 
Colonel 

William  J.  Donovan 
Lieutenant   Colonels 

Charles  A.  Dravo 

Timothy    J.    Moynahan 
(Two  Citations) 


Majors 

Henry  A.  Bootz 
Michael   A.   Kelly 

Captains 
Henry  K.  Cassidy 
Oscar  L.   Buck 
Kenneth   Ogle 
Charles  D.  Baker 

(Deceased) 
Beverly  H.   Becker 

First    Lieutenants 
John    Norman 

(Deceased)     ' 
Thomas   C.   P.    Martin 
George  F.  Patton 

Second    Lieutenants 
Arthur   S.    Booth 
W.  Arthur  Cunningham 
Henry  W.   Davis 

(Deceased) 
Raymond  H.  Newton 

Sergeants 
Co.  A,  William  J.   Moore 
Co.  A,  Daniel  O'Connell 
Co.  A,   Spencer  G.   Rossell 
Co.  B,  Spiros  Thomas 
Co.  C,  Eugene  A.  McNiff 
Co.  Hq.,    Abram    Blaustein 
Co.  D,  Thomas  M.  O'Malley 
Co.  E,   Carl   Kahn 
Co.  E,  William  E.  Bailey 
Co.  G,  James  D.  Coffey 
Co.  G,   James    Murray 
Co.  C,  Thomas  P.  O'Hagan 
Co.  K,   Leo  A.  Bonnard 
Co.  D,   Joseph   J.   Lynch 
Co.  A,  John  F.  Scully 
Co.  G,   Martin   Shalley 
Co.  H,   Jerome   F~.    O'Neill 
Co.  H,  Bruno  Gunther 
Co.  A,  Joseph  G.  Pettit 
Co.  A,  Frank   A.   Fisher 
Co.  B,   Christian   Biorndall 
Co.  B,  William  P.  Judge 
Co.  D,  Thomas  H.  Brown 
Co.  E,  Alfred  S.  Helmer 
Co.  F,  Theodore  H.   Hagen 
Co.  H,  John  P.   Furey 
Co.  D,  John    Cahin 
Co.  A,   Michael    Morley 
Co.  B,  Daniel  J.  Finnegan 
Co.  C,  James   Barry 
Co.  C,  Michael  Cooney 
Co.  D,    Dennis    O'Connor 
Co.  D,  Patrick  Grogan 


358 


APPENDIX 


Co.  C,  Herman  H.  Hillig 
Co.  A,  Thomas  Sweeney 
Co.  C,  Michael  Ruane 
Co,  D,  John  J.  Gribbon 
Co.    I,  Michael  A.  Donaldson 
Co.  A,  Matthew  A.  Kane 
Co.  Hq.,    Joyce    Kilmer 

(Deceased) 
Corporals 

Co.  F,  John  Finnegan 

(Deceased) 
Co.  L,  Lawrence  G.  Spencer 

(Deceased) 
Co.  D,  Marlow  H.  Plant 
Co.  C,   Bernard   Barry 

(Deceased) 
Co.  A,  George  A.  McCarthy 
Co.  B,  Vincent  J.   Eckas 
Co.  Hq.,  Charles  S.  Jones 


Co.  B,  Frank  Brandreth 
Co.  C,  John  J.  Brawley 
Co.  D,  Harry  H.  DeVoe 
Co.  E,  James  Quigley 
Co.  A,  Bernard   McOwen 

(Deceased) 
Co.  A,  Matthew  A.  Rice 

(Two  Citations) 
Co.  K,   Burr   Pinkie 

Cook 
Co.  M,  Robert  Riggsby 

Private 

John  Teevan 

ORDER  OF  ST.  LEPOLD 

(BELGIUM) 

Second  Lieutnant 
Thomas  J.  Devine 


APPENDIX  359 

HEADQUARTERS,  165TH  INFANTRY 

(Old  69th  N.  Y.) 

Remagen,  Germany,  March  28,  1919. 
GENERAL  ORDER. 
No.  12 
To  the  Officers  and  the  Men  of  the  165th  Infantry,  42nd  Division. 
The  following  extracts  from  orders  and  letters  commendatory  of 
the  42nd  Division  and  the  165th  Infantry  issued  by  our  own  Arrny  and 
that  of  our  illustrious  Ally  the  French,  indicate  a  deep  appreciation  of 
your  worth  as  soldiers  and  pay  a  high  tribute  to  your  valorous  conduct 
on  the  Fields  of  Battle. 

William  J.  Donovan 
John  P.  Hurley, 
Capt.  Adj.,  165th  Infantry. 


March  21,   1918. 

The  Lieut.  Colonel  Commanding  the  13th  Group  of  Chasseurs  re- 
ports that  in  the  course  of  the  double  coup  de  main  exe  uted  in  the 
night  of  the  20-21  March,  the  conduct  of  the  American  detachment  of 
the  165th  Regiment  has  been  particularly  worth;-  of  commendation, 
and  that  Officers  and  Soldiers  have  given  proof  of  an  enthusiastic 
bravery. 

The  General  Commanding  the  164th  Division  v/ishes  to  make  known 
to  all  this  appreciation,  which  justifies  amply  the  confidence  that  we 
all  have  in  our  allies,  a  confidence  doubled  by  the  friendship  and  by  the 
aflfectionate  sympathy  that  the  common  life  in  the  Sector  has  spon- 
taneously brought  into  being. 

General  Gaucher,  Commanding  the  164th  Division. 


April  I,  1918. 
From :        Commanding  General,  First  Army  Corps. 

To :  Commanding  General,  42d  Division,  A.  E.  F.  ' 

Subject :     Commendations. 

1.  The  Chief  of  the  French  Military  Mission  has  forwarded  to  the 
Commander-in-Chief,  A.  E.  F.,  copies  of  citations  and  proposals  con- 
cerning three  officers  and  eight  enlisted  men  of  the  165th  Infantry. 

2.  The  Commander-in-Chief  charges  me  with  the  conveyance  to 
these  officers  and  soldiers  his  particular  appreciation  of  their  splendid 
conduct,  which  has  won  for  them  these  citations  from  the  French 
Army. 

3.  To  the  appreciation  thus  conferred  by  the  Commander-in-Chief, 
the  Corps  Commander  adds  his  own  and  desires  that  the  foregoing  be 
made  known  in  a  suitable  manner  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  cited. 

By  direction, 

Malin    Craig, 

Chief  of  Staff. 


860  APPENDIX 

May  21,  1918. 

The  First  Company,  under  Captain  Edart,  penetrated  the  German 
line  on  the  night  of  May  19-20,  1918,  and  the  following  night  it  drove 
back  with  vigor  the  Germans  who  came  out  against  us  from  their  lines, 
thus  maintaining  our  superiority  in  morale. 

In  the  course  of  these  operations  the  American  Volunteers  (from 
Second  Battalion,  165th  Infantry),  who  were  attached  to  the  Edart 
Company  displayed  the  utmost  dash  and  coolness,  as  well  as  a  splendid 
comradeship  in  battle. 

I  Iiave  the  honor  to  ask  for  them  in  recompense  the  authorization  to 
cite  them  in  my  Regimental  Order. 

Colonel  Jungbluth,  Cdt.  67th  R.  I. 


6th  ARMY  CORPS  H.  Q.  June  15,  1918. 

At  the  moment  when  the  42nd  U.  S.  Infantry  Division  is  leaving 
the  Lorraine  front,  the  Commanding  General  of  the  6th  Army  Corps 
desires  to  do  homage  to  the  fine  military  qualities  which  it  has  con- 
tinuously exhibited,  and  to  the  services  which  it  has  rendered  in  the 
Baccarat  sector. 

The  offensi^'e  ardor,  the  sense  for  the  utilization  and  the  organiza- 
tion of  terrain,  the  spirit  of  method,  the  discipline  shown  by  all  its 
officers  and  men,  the  inspiration  animating  them,  prove  that  at  the  first 
call,  they  can  henceforth  take  a  glorious  place  in  tne  new  line  of 
battle. 

The  Commanding  General  of  the  6th  Army  Corps  expresses  his 
deepest  gratitude  to  the  42nd  Division  for  its  precious  collaboration; 
he  particularly  thanks  the  distinguished  Commander  of  this  Division, 
General  Menoher,  the  Officers  under  his  orders  and  his  Staff  so 
brilliantly  directed  by  Colonel  MacArthur. 

It  is  with  a  sincere  regret  that  the  entire  6th  Army  Corps  sees  the 
42nd  Division  depart.  But  the  bonds  of  affectionate  comradeship  which 
have  been  formed  here  will  not  be  broken ;  for  us,  in  faithful  memory, 
are  united  the  living  and  the  dead  of  the  Rainbow  Division,  those  who 
are  leaving  for  hard  combats  and  those  who,  after  having  nobly  sacri- 
ficed their  lives  on  this  Eastern  Border,  now  rest  there,  guarded  over 
piously  by  France. 

These  sentiments  of  warm  esteem  will  be  still  more  deeply  affirmed, 
during  the  impending  struggles  where  the  fate  of  Free  Peoples  is  to  be 
decided. 

May  our  units,  side  by  side,  contribute  valiantly  to  the  triumph  of 
Justice  and  Right: 

General  Duport. 


APPENDIX  361 

June  i8,  1 918. 
To:     Colonel  McCoy, 

Commanding  i6sth  Inf.  Rgt. 

My  Dear  Colonel  McCoy: 

I  greatly  appreciate  the  kind  thought  you  had  in  sending  me  your 
order  No.  10  relating  the  numerous  citations  that  have  been  granted 
to  the  165th. 

The  old  New  York  regiment  has  a  great  past  of  glory.  I  am  sure 
it  will  be  famous  on  the  battlefields  of  France  as  it  has  been  in 
America. 

I  also  want  to  thank  you  for  the  kind  farewell  you  gave  Captain 
Mercier.  I  know  this  Officer  feels  sad  in  leaving  your  regiment.  He 
will  keep  a  precious  recollection  of  the  six  months  he  spent  with  his 
gallant  Irish  comrades. 

With  the  expression  of  my  personal  appreciation  of  your  kindness 
and  my  best  compliments, 

I  am, 

Sincerely  yours, 

J.   CORBABON, 

Major,  Liaison  Officer, 

42nd  Division. 


4th  ARMY  H.  Q.  July  16,   1918. 

SOLDIERS  OF  THE  4TH  ARAIY 

During  the  day  of  July  15th,  you  broke  the  effort  of  fifteen  German 
divisions,  supported  by  ten  others. 

They  were  expected  according  to  their  orders  to  reach  the  Marne 
in  the  evening:  You  stopped  their  advance  clearly  at  the  point  where 
we  desired  to  engage  in  and  win  the  battle. 

You  have  the  right  to  be  proud,  heroic  infantrymen  and  machine 
gunners  of  the  advance  posts  who  met  the  attack  and  broke  it  up, 
aviators  who  flew  over  it,  batt-\]ions  and  batteries  which  broke  it, 
staffs  which  so  minutely  prepared  the  battlefield. 

It  is  a  hard  blow  for  the  enemy.    It  is  a  grand  day  for  FRANCE. 

I  count  on  you  that  it  may  always  be  the  same  every  time  he  dares 
to  attack  you ;  and  with  all  my  heart  of  a  soldier,  I  thank  you. 

GCURAUD, 


362  APPENDIX 

21ST  ARMY  CORPS,  July  17,  1918. 

170TH  DIVISION, 

General  BERNARD,  Commanding  par  interim  the  170th  Division. 

To  the  Commanding  General  of  the  42nd  U.  S.  Inf.  Division. 

The  Commanding  General  of  the  170th  Infantry  Division  desires  to 
express  to  the  Commanding  General  of  the  42nd  U.  S.  Infantry  Divi- 
sion his  keen  admiration  for  the  courage  and  bravery  of  which  the 
American  Battalions  of  the  83rd  Brigade  liave  given  proof  in  the 
course  of  the  hard  fighting  of  the  15th  and  i6th  of  July,  1918,  as  also 
for  the  effectiveness  of  the  artillery  fire  of  the  43iid  U.  S.  Infantry 
Division. 

In  these  two  days  the  troops  of  the  United  States  by  their  tenacity, 
largely  aided  tlieir  French  comrades  in  breaking  the  repeated  assaults 
of  the  7th  Reserve  Division,  the  ist  Infantry  Division  and  the  Dis- 
mounted Cavalry  Guard  Division  of  the  Germans:  these  latter  two 
divisions  are  among  the  best  of  Germany. 

According  to  the  order  captured  on  the  German  officers  made  pris- 
oner, their  Staff  wished  to  take  Chalon-sur-Marne  on  the  evening  of 
July  i6th,  but  it  had  reconed  without  the  valor  of  the  American  and 
French  combatants,  who  told  them  with  machine  gun,  rifle  and  cannon 
shots  that  they  would  not  pass. 

The  Commanding  General  of  the  170th  Infantry  Division  is  there- 
fore particularly  proud  to  observe  that  in  mingling  their  blood  glori- 
ously on  the  Battlefield  of  Champagne,  the  Americans  and  the  French 
of  today  are  continuing  the  magnificent  traditions  established  a  century 
and  a  half  ago  by  Washington  and  Lafayette;  it  is  with  this  sentiment 
that  he  salutes  the  Noble  Flag  of  the  United  States  in  thinking  of  the 
final  Victory. 

Bernard. 


21ST  ARMY  CORPS  Hq.,  July  19,  1918. 

GENERAL  ORDER 

At  the  moment  when  the  42nd  American  Division  is  on  the  point 
of  leaving  the  21st  Army  Corps,  I  desire  to  express  my  keen  satisfac- 
tion and  my  sincere  thanks  for  the  service  which  it  has  rendered  under 
all  conditions. 

By  its  valor,  ardor  and  spirit,  it  has  very  particularly  distinguished 
itself  on  July  15th  and  i6th  in  the  course  of  the  great  battle  where  the 
4th  Army  broke  the  German  offensive  on  the  CHAMPAGNE  front. 

I  am  proud  to  have  had  it  under  my  orders  during  this  period ;  my 
prayers  accompany  it  in  the  great  struggle  engaged  in  for  the  Liberty 
of  the  World. 

General  Naulin, 
Commanding  the  21st  Army  Corps. 


APrExNDIX  363 

6TH  ARMY  P.  C.  July  26,  1918. 

NOTE. 

The  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  REPUBLIC,  in  the  course  of  a  visit 
to  the  6th  Army,  expressed  his  satisfaction  over  the  results  obtained, 
as  well  as  for  the  qualities  of  valor  and  perseverance  manifested  by  all 
units  of  the  Army. 

The  Commanding  General  of  the  6th  Army,  is  happy  to  transmit  to 
the  troops  of  his  Army  the  felicitations  of  the  PRESIDENT  OF  THE 
REPUBLIC. 

Signed :     General  DeGoutte. 


July  28,  1918. 
From:        Commanding  General,  ist  Army  Corps,  Am.  E.  F. 
To :  Commanding  General,  42nd  Division,  Am.  E.  F. 

Subject :     Congratulations : 

1.  The  return  of  the  42nd  Division  to  the  ist  Army  Corps  was  a 
matter  of  self-congratulation  for  the  Corps  Commander,  not  only  be- 
cause of  previous  relations  with  the  Division,  but  also  because  of  the 
crisis  which  existed  at  the  time  of  its  arrival. 

2.  The  standard  of  efficient  performance  of  duty  which  is  demanded 
by  the  Commander-in-Chief,  American  K.  F.,  is  a  high  one,  involving 
as  it  does  on  an  occasion  such  as  the  present  complete  self-sacrifice  on 
the  part  of  the  entire  personnel,  and  a  willingness  to  accept  cheerfully 
every  demand  even  to  the  limit  of  endurance  of  the  individual  for  the 
sake  of  the  Cause  for  which  we  are  in  France. 

3.  The  taking  over  of  the  front  of  the  ist  Army  Corps  under  the 
conditions  of  relief  and  advance,  together  with  the  attendant  difllculties 
incident  to  widening  the  front,  was  in  itself  no  small  undertaking,  and 
there  is  added  to  this  your  advance  in  the  face  of  the  enemy  to  a 
depth  of  five  or  more  kilometers,  all  under  cover  of  darkness,  to  the 
objective  laid  down  by  higher  authority  to  be  attained,  which  objective 
you  were  holding,  regardless  of  the  efforts  of  the  enemy  to  dislodge 
you.  The  Corps  Commander  is  pleased  to  inform  you  that  the  42nd 
Division  has  fully  measured  up  to  the  high  standard  above  referred  to, 
and  he  reiterates  his  self-congratulation  that  you  and  your  organiza- 
tion are  again  a  part  of  the  ist  Army  Corps.,  Am.  E.  F. 

(Signed)     H.   Liggett, 

Major  General,   U.   S.   A. 


S64  APPENDIX 

6TH  ARMY  P.  C.  August  9,  1918. 

GENERAL  ORDER. 

Before  the  great  offensive  of  the  i8th  of  July,  the  American 
troops  forming  part  of  the  6th  French  Army  distinguished  themselves 
in  capturing  from  the  enemy  the  Bois  de  la  Brigade  De  Marine  and  the 
village  of  VAUX,  in  stopping  his  offensive  on  the  MARNE  and  at 
FOSSOY. 

Since  then,  they  have  taken  the  most  glorious  part  in  a  second 
battle  of  the  MARNE,  rivaling  in  order  and  in  valiance  the  French 
troops.  They  have,  in  twenty  days  of  incessant  combat,  liberated 
numerous  French  villages  and  realized  across  a  difficult  country  an 
advance  of  forty  kilometers,  which  has  carried  them  beyond  the 
VESLES. 

Their  glorious  marches  are  marked  by  names  which  will  illustrate 
in  the  future,  the  military  history  of  the  United  States : 

TORCY,  BELLEAU,  Plateau  d'ENREPILLY,  EPIEDS,  Le 
CHARMEL,  rOURCQ,  SERINGES-et-NESLES,  SERGY,  La 
VESLE  and  FISMES. 

The  new  divisions  who  were  under  fire  for  the  first  time  showed 
themselves  worthy  of  the  old  war-like  traditions  of  the  Regular  Army. 
They  have  had  the  same  ardent  desire  to  fight  the  Boche,  the  same 
discipline  by  which  an  order  given  by  the  Chief  is  always  executed, 
whatever  be  the  difficulties  to  overcome  and  the  sacrifices  to  undergo. 

The  magnificent  results  obtained  are  due  to  the  energy  and  skill 
of  the  Chiefs,  to  the  bravery  of  the  soldiers. 

I  am  proud  to  have  commanded  such  troops. 

The  General  Commanding  the  6th  Army, 

DeGoutte. 


Headquarters,  42nd  Division, 

AMERICAN  EXPEDITIONARY  FORCES,  FRANCE, 

August  13,  1918. 

TO  THE  OFFICERS  AND  MEN  OF  THE  42ND  DIVISION: 

A  year  has  elapsed  since  the  formation  of  your  organization.  It 
is,  therefore,  fitting  to  consider  what  you  have  accomplished  as  a  com- 
bat division  and  what  you  should  prepare  to  accomplish  in  the  Future. 

Your  first  elements  entered  the  trenches  in  Lorraine  on  February 
2ist.  You  served  on  that  front  for  no  days.  You  were  the  first 
American  division  to  hold  a  divisional  sector  and  when  you  left  the 
sector  June  21st,  you  had  served  continuously  as  a  division  in  the 
trenches  for  a  longer  time  than  any  other  American  division.    Although 


APPENDIX  365 

you  entered  the  sector  without  experience  in  actual  warfare,  you  so 
conducted  yourselves  as  to  win  the  respect  and  affection  of  the  French 
veterans  with  whom  you  fouc^ht.  Under  gas  and  bombardment,  in  raids, 
in  patrols,  in  the  heat  of  hand-to-hand  combat,  and  in  the  long,  dull 
hours  of  trench  routine  so  trying. to  a  soldier's  spirit,  you  bore  your- 
selves in  a  manner  worthy  of  the  traditions  of  our  country. 

You  were  withdrawn  from  Lorraine  and  moved  immediately  to  the 
Champagne  front,  where,  during  tlie  critical  days  from  July  14th  to 
July  i8th,  you  had  the  honor  of  being  the  only  American  division  to 
fight  in  General  Gouraud's  Army,  which  so  gloriously  obeyed  his 
order:  "We  will  stand  or  die,"  and  by  its  iron  defense  crushed  the 
German  assaults  and  made  possible  the  offensive  of  July  iSth  to  the 
west  of  Reims. 

From  Champagne  you  were  called  to  take  part  in  exploiting  the  suc- 
cess north  of  the  Marne.  Fresh  from  the  battle  front  before  Chalons, 
you  were  thrown  against  the  picked  troops  of  Germany.  For  eight 
consecutive  days,  you  attacked  skillfully  prepared  positions.  You 
captured  great  stores  of  arms  and  munitions.  You  forced  the  cross- 
ings of  the  Ourcq.  You  took  Hill  212,  Sergy,  Meurcy  Farm  and 
Seringes  by  assault.  You  drove  the  enemy,  including  an  Imperial 
Guard  Division,  before  you  for  a  depth  of  fifteen  kilometers.  When 
your  infantry  was  relieved,  it  was  in  full  pursuit  of  the  retreating 
Germans,  and  your  artillery  continued  to  progress  and  support  another 
American  division  in  the  advance  to  the  Vesle. 

For  your  services  in  Lorraine,  your  division  was  formally  com- 
mended in  General  Orders  by  the  French  Army  Corps  under  which 
you  served.  For  your  services  in  Champagne,  your  assembled  officers 
received  the  personal  thanks  and  commendation  of  General  Gouraud 
himself.  For  your  service  on  the  Ourcq,  your  division  was  officially 
complimented  in  a  letter  from  the  Commanding  General,  ist  Army 
Corps,  of  July  28th,  1918. 

To  your  success,  all  ranks  and  all  services  have  contributed,  and  I 
desire  to  express  to  every  man  in  the  command  my  appreciation  of  his 
devoted  and  courageous  effort. 

However,  our  position  places  a  burden  of  responsibility  upon  us 
which  we  must  strive  to  bear  steadily  forward  without  faltering.  To 
our  comrades  who  have  fallen,  we  owe  the  sacred  obligation  of  main- 
taining the  reputation  which  they  died  to  establish.  The  influence  of 
our  performance  on  our  Allies  and  on  our  enemies  can  not  be  over 
estimated,  for  we  were  one  of  the  first  divisions  sent  from  our  country 
to  France  to  show  the  world  that  Americans  can  fight. 

Hard  battles  and  long  campaigns  lie  before  us.  Only  by  ceaseless 
vigilance  and  tireless  preparation  can  we  fit  ourselves  for  them.  I 
urge  you,  therefore,  to  approach  the  future  with  confidence,  but  above 
all,  with  firm  determination  that  so  far  as  it  is  in  your  power  you  will 
spare  no  effort,  whether  in  training  or  in  combat,  to  maintain  the 
record  of  our  division  and  the  honor  of  our  country. 

Charles  T.  Menoher, 
Major  General,  U.  S.  Army. 


366  APPENDIX 

Headquarters  42nd  Division. 

SUMMARY  OF  INTELLIGENCE. 

October,  1918. 

On  October  18,  1917,  one  year  ago  today,  the  Headquarters  and 
certain  of  the  elements  of  the  42nd  Division  sailed  for  France.  .  .  . 

The  Division  is  now  engaged  in  the  most  difficult  task  to  which  it 
has  yet  been  set :  The  piercing  at  its  apex  of  the  "Kriemhilde  Stel- 
lung,"  upon  the  defense  of  which  position  the  German  line  from  METZ 
to  CHAMPAGNE  depends. 

During  its  service  in  France,  Division  Headquarters  has  had  its 
Post  of  Command  at  23  different  points  in  towns,  woods  and  dugouts. 
The  Division  has  captured  prisoners  from  23  enemy  divisions,  including 
three  Guard  and  one  Austro-Hungarian  divisions. 

Charles  T.  Menoher, 

Major  General,  U.  S.  Army 


HEADQUARTERS  42d  DIVISION. 

American  Expeditionary  Forces.     France. 

November  nth,  1918. 
To  the  Officers  and  iMen  of  the  42nd  Division : 

On  the  13th  of  August  I  addressed  you  a  letter  summarizing  the 
record  of  your  achievements  in  Lorraine,  before  Chalons  and  on  the 
Ourcq.  On  the  occasion  of  my  leaving  the  Division  I  wish  to  recall 
to  you  your  services  since  that  time  and  to  express  to  you  my  apprecia- 
tion of  the  unfailing  spirit  of  courage  and  cheerfulness  with  which  you 
have  met  and  overcome  the  difficult  tasks  which  have  confronted  you. 

After  leaving  the  region  of  Chateau  Thierry  you  had  scarcely  been 
assembled  in  your  nev;  area  when  you  were  ordered  to  advance  by  hard 
night  marches  to  participate  in  the  attack  of  the  St.  Mihiel  Salient.  In 
this  first  great  operation  of  the  American  Army  you  were  instructed 
to  attack  in  the  center  of  the  Fourth  Army  Corps  and  to  deliver  the 
main  blow  in  the  direction  of  the  heights  overlooking  the  Madine 
River.  In  the  battle  that  followed  you  took  every  objective  in  accord- 
ance with  the  plan  of  the  Army  Commander.  You  advanced  fourteen 
kilometers  in  twenty-eight  hours.  You  pushed  forward  advance  ele- 
ments five  kilometers  further,  or  nineteen  kilometers  beyond  your 
original  starting  point.  You  took  more  than  one  thousand  prisoners 
from  nine  enemy  divisions.  You  captured  seven  villages  and  forty-two 
square  kilometers  of  territory.  You  seized  large  supplies  of  food, 
clothing,  ammunition,  guns  and  engineering  material. 

Worn  though  you  were  by  ceaseless  campaigning  since  February,  you 
then  moved  to  the  Verdun  region  to  participate  in  the  great  blow  which 
your  country's  armies  have  struck  west  of  the  Meuse.     You  took  Hill 


APPENDIX  367 

2S3,  La  Tuilerie  Farm  and  the  Cote  de  Chatillon  and  broke  squarely 
across  the  powerful  Kriemhilde  Stellung,  clearing  the  way  for  the  ad- 
vance beyond  St.  Georges  and  Landres-et-St.  Georges.  Marching  and 
fighting  day  and  night  you  thrust  through  the  advancing  lines  of  the 
forward  troops  of  the  First  Army.  You  drove  the  enemy  across  the 
Meuse.  You  captured  the  heights  dominating  the  River  before  Sedan 
and  reached  in  the  enemy  lines  the  farthest  points  attained  by  any 
American  troops. 

Since  September  12th  you  have  taken  over  twelve  hundred  prison- 
ers ;  you  have  freed  twenty-five  French  villages ;  you  have  recovered 
over  one  hundred  and  fifty  square  kilometers  of  French  territory  and 
you  have  captured  great  supplies  of  enemy  munitions  and  material. 

WhatevTr  may  come  in  the  future,  the  men  of  this  Division  will 
tiave  the  proud  consciousness  that  they  have  thus  far  fought  wherever 
the  American  flag  has  flown  most  gloriously  in  this  war.  In  the  de- 
termining battle  before  Chalons,  in  the  bloody  drive  from  Chateau 
Thierry  to  the  Vesle,  in  the  blotting  out  of  the  St.  Mihiel  Salient,  and 
in  the  advance  to  Sedan  you  have  played  a  splendid  and  a  leading  part. 

I  know  that  you  will  give  the  same  unfailing  support  to  whoever 
may  succeed  me  as  your  Commander,  and  that  you  will  continue  to  bear 
forward  without  faltering  the  colors  of  the  Rainbow  Division.  I  leave 
you  with  deep  and  affectionate  regret,  and  I  thank  you  again  for  your 
loyalty  to  rne  and  your  services  to  your  country.  You  have  struck  a 
vital  blow  in  the  greatest  war  in  history.  You  have  proved  to  the 
world  in  no  mean  measure  that  our  country  can  defend  its  own. 

Charles  T.  Menoher, 

Major  General,  U.  S.  Army. 


AMERICAN  EXPEDITIONARY  FORCES, 

Office  of  the  Commander-in-Chief. 

France,  March  22,  1919. 
Major  General  Clement  A.  F.  Flagler, 
Commanding  42nd  Division, 
American  E.  F., 

Ahrweiler,  Germany. 

My  Dear  General  Flagler  : 

It  afforded  me  great  satisfaction  to  inspect  the  42nd  Division  at 
Remagen  on  March  i6th,  during  my  trip  through  the  Third  Army,  and 
to  e.xtend  at  that  time  to  the  officers  and  men  my  appreciation  of  their 
splendid  record  while  in  France. 

The  share  which  the  42nd  Division  has  had  in  the  success  of  our 

Armies  should  arouse  pride  in  its  achievements  among  all  ranks.    Ar- 

~  riving  as  it  did  on  November  i,  191 7,  it  was  one  of  the  first  of  our 

combat  divisions  to  participate  in  active  operations.     After  a  period  of 

training  which  lasted  through  the  middle  of  February,  1918,  it  entered 


668 


APPENDIX 


•the  Luneville  sector  in  Lorraine,  and  shortly  afterwards  took  up  a 
position  in  that  part  of  the  line  near  Baccarat.  In  July  it  magnificently 
showed  its  fighting  ability  in  the  Champagne-Marne  defensive,  at  which 
time  units  from  the  42nd  Division  aided  the  French  in  completely  re- 
pulsing the  German  attack.  Following  this,  on  July  25th,  the  Division 
relieved  the  28th  in  the  Aisne-Marne  offensive,  and  in  the  course  of 
their  action  there  captured  La  Croix  Rouge  Farme,  Sergy,  and  estab- 
lished themselves  on  the  northern  side  of  the  Ourcq.  In  the  St. 
Mihiel  offensive  the  division  made  a  rapid  advance  of  19  kilometers, 
capturing  seven  villages.  Later,  during  the.  Meuse-Argonne  battle,  it 
was  twice  put  in  the  line,  first  under  the  5th  Corps  and  second  under 
the  1st  Corps,  at  which  later  time  it  drove  back  the  enemy  until  it 
arrived  opposite  Sedan  on  November  7th. 

Since  the  signing  of  the  armistice,  the  42nd  Division  has  had  the 
honor  of  being  one  of  those  composing  the  Army  of  Occupation,  and  I 
have  only  words  of  praise  for  their  splendid  conduct  and  demeanor 
during  this  time.  I  want  each  man  to  realize  the  part  he  has  played  in 
bringing  glory  to  American  arms  and  to  understand  both  my  pride  and 
the  pride  of  their  fellows  throughout  the  American  Expeditionary 
Forces  in  their  record.  My  good  wishes  accompany  your  command  on 
its  return  to  the  United  States,  and  my  interest  will  remain  with  its 
members  in  their  future  careers. 

Sincerely  yours, 

(Signed)    John  J.   Pershing. 


OFFICERS  WHO  SERVED  IN  THE  165TH  INFANTRY 


Colonels 
Barker,  John   W. 
(Promoted  to  Brigadier  General) 
Ponovan,   William  J. 

Promoted  from  Major) 

Hine,   Charles  D. 

Howland,   Charles  R. 

McCoy,  Frank  R. 

<  Promoted  to  Brigadier  General) 

Mitchell,   Harry  D. 

(Promoted    from   Lieut.-Colonel) 

Lieut.-Coloncls 
Anderson,    Alexander    K 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 

Dravo.  Charles  A. 
Moynahan,  Timothy  J. 

(Promoted  from  Major) 
Reed,  Latham  R. 

Majors 
3ootz,   Henry  A. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut.) 
Doyle,  William  T. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 


Guggenheim,   Robert   M. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut) 
Kelly,  Michael  A. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Lawrence,    George    J. 
McAdie,   George 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
McKenna,  James  A.* 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Mangan,  John  J. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Meaney,    Martin   H. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Merle-Smith,  Van   S. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Powers,  Walter  E. 

^Promoted  from  Captain) 
Reilley,  Thomas  T. 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Stacom,  William  B. 
Kennelly,  William 

(Promoted  from  Captain) 
Watson,  James 
Zorn,  Jay 


■  Deceased 


APPENDIX 


369 


Captains 

Archer,  James 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Allen,   Richard  J. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut. 
Baker,  Chas.  D.'* 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut. 
Becker,  Beverly  H. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Behrcnds,  Jerome  B. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut. 
Billings,  Forest  E. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut. 
Burns,  Coleman 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Buck,   Oscar  L. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Cavanaush,  William   P. 

(Promoted   from    ist  Lieut. 
Cooke,  William  C. 

( Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut. 
Cassidy,  Henry  K. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut. 
Conners,  John   F. 

(Promoted    from    1st  Lieut. 
Connelly,  Edmond  J. 

( Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut. 
Gifford,  John  J. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut. 
Cooper,  Jackson   S. 
Dudley,  Gerry  B. 
DeLacour,  R.   B. 

(Promoted    from   1st  Lieut. 
Elmer,    Basil    B. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut. 
Finn,  James  G. 
Foley,  James  L. 

(Promoted   from    ist  Lieut. 
Given,  William  B. 

(Promoted   from    ist  Lieut. 
Green,  John  A. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Graham,  Walter  R. 
Hurley,  John  P, 
Hudson,  William  E. 
Houghton,   James   T. 

(Promoted   from   1st  Lieut. 
Grose,  Howard 

(Promoted    from   1st  Lieut. 
Josselyn,  Ralph  R. 
Kinney,  Thomas  A. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut. 
Landrigan,  Alfred  W. 

(Promoted   from   ist  Lieut 


Lyttle,  John  D. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut.) 
Lawrence,   Austin  L. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut.) 
O'Brien,  Joseph  F. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut.) 
McKenna,  William  F. 

(Promoted    from    ist   Lieut.) 
McNamara,   Francis  J. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut.) 
McDermott,  Thomas  B. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut.) 
Mangan,  James  M. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut.) 
Martin,  Arthur  H. 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut.) 
Marsh,  Frank 

(Promoted    from    ist  Lieut.) 
Smith,  Samuel  A. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut.) 
Seibert,   Kenneth   C. 
Stout,  I^ouis  A. 

(Promoted    from   ist  Lieut.) 
Riggs,  Francis  P. 
Ryan,  Richard  J. 
Ogle,  Kenneth 

(Promoted  from  ist  LieutT) 
Prout,   John   T. 

(Promoted  from  ist  Lieut.) 
Gillespie,    PVancis    H. 
Walsh,  Michael   J.* 

(Promoted  from  1st  Lieut.) 
Rowley,  John  F. 

(Promoted  from  2nd  Lieut.) 

First  Lieutenants 

Allen,    Harold    L. 
Arnold,   Howard   W.* 
Bell,  Ernest  L. 
Board,  Walter 
Benz,  George  A. 
Byrne,   Bernard   E. 
Baldwin,  William  W* 
Boag,  Joseph  J. 
Burns,  William  J. 
Burke,  John  J. 
Brownstone,  Michael 
Betty,  Harold  J. 
Carroll,  Joseph  V. 
Carson,  Allen  G. 
Cowett,  Max  P. 
Collier,  James 
Crandall,  H.  W. 


Deceased 


370 


APPENDIX 


Crawford,  Henry  E. 
Doris,  Roscoe 
Damico,  Joseph  G. 
Dowling,   Patrick   J* 
Everett,  Eugene  F. 
Force,   Russell 
Fechheimer,  John  H. 
Friedlander,  William  M. 
Furbershaw,  Arthur  W. 
Goodell,  Guy  F. 
Guignon,  Emile  S. 
Hanley,  James  M. 
Howe,  Paul  D. 
Henry,  John  T. 
Heller,  Abraham  I. 
Horak,  Frank 
Hutchinson,  Warren  B. 
Heinel,  John  P. 
Hurt,  Paul  A. 
Holmes,  Merril  J. 
Irving,  Lawrence 
Johnson,  Clarence  E. 
Knowles,  Ralph  S. 
King,  George  I. 
Kirkland,  John 
Kilcourse,  John  J. 
Ketcham,   Ralph   C. 
Kane,  Bothwell  B  * 
Keveny,   John 
Korst,  Donald  F. 
Kelly,  Henry  E. 
Kirschnerj   William  J. 
Lawrence,  Andrew  W. 
Leslie,  J.  Langdon 
Light,  Wesley  W. 
Leaper,  Robert  B. 
Levine,  A.  A. 
McNamara,  Joseph  D. 
Mclntyre,  James  B. 
McCartney,  A.  R. 
McCormick,  Charles  A. 
McCormick,  Edward  J. 
McKeon,   Andrew   J. 
Martin,  Thomas  C.  P. 
Martin,   Reune 
Norman,  John  * 
O'Donohue,  Joseph  J. 
Orgle,  Samuel  Z. 
O'Sullivan,  John  F. 
Otto,  George  F. 
Patton,  William  H. 
Fierce,    Charles    H. 
Piatt,    Sherman   T. 
Poore,  John  G. 
Perry,  Donald  A. 


Powers,  Robert  E. 
Robertson,  Allen  D. 
Stevens,   Floyd  L. 
Stone,  Thomas  F. 
Spencer,  William  M. 
Sims,  Anthony  J. 
Springer,   Franklin  H. 
Seidelmann,  Joseph  H. 
Smith,   Francis 
Smith,  Herman  H.* 
Surber,  Paul 
Stokes,  Horace  W. 
Schwinn,  John  M. 
Terry,   Alvah   L. 
Tarr,  Marshall  A. 
Trotter.  L.    S. 
Williams,   Harry  V. 
Williams,  Allen  R, 
Williams,  John  J. 
Wheeler,    William    D. 
W^arren,  George  H. 
Young,  Thomas  H.* 

Second  Lieutenants 
Ames,  Oliver  * 
Ahern,  David  H. 
Alexander,  John  M. 
Arcnholz,  William  J. 
Beach,  Clayton  W* 
Bocard,  Fred  J. 
Burns,   Zenas   T. 
Burns,  James  S.  D.* 
Burns,   Edwin  J. 
Boone,  Philip   T. 
Bunnell,  A.  L. 
Bonner,  Robert 
Brocard,  Frank 
Brosnan,   John   J. 
Bracken,  Benjamin 
Burke,  John  H. 
Cunningham,   Arthur  W. 
Carten,  James  E. 
Carleton,  Howard  C. 
Callahan.  Andrew  J. 
Crane,  William  D. 
Collier,  James 
Crimmins,  Clarence 
Crandall.  Harold  M. 
Carter,  Franklin  W. 
Daly,  Edwin  A.* 
Daly,  Ewing  P. 
Devine,  Thomas  J. 
Davis,  Henry  W.* 


*  Deceased 


APPENDIX 


371 


DeAguerro,  Miguel  E. 
Ellett,  Andrew  L.* 
Elliott,    Don 
Finn,  William 
Flynn,  Daniel  ¥L 
Field,  Eugene  B. 
Graham,  William  H. 
GrefT,  Lester  M. 
Goodwin,   Schuj'ler 
Hutchinson,  Roderick 
Hawes,  Lincoln 
Hervey,  Frank 
Henry,  J.  F. 
Huelser,  Charles  A. 
Johnston,  Frank 
Johnson,  Cortland 
Johnson,  Garence  E. 
Jewell,  William  A.* 
Jackson,  Thomas  J. 
Kotz,  George  L 
Kelly,  William  T. 
Koenig,   Paul  S. 
Katch,   Joseph  J. 
Laughlin,   James   C. 
Levenberg,  Lawrence  F. 
Lacy,   Philip  S. 
Larkin,  John  J. 
Lawson,  Alexander 
Larney,  Leo 
Lenoir,  Frank 
Levy,  Morris  R. 
Lisiezki,    Stanley   K. 
Lanette,  Kenneth 
McKnight,    John 
McMulliri,  James  C. 
McNulty,  William 
McMullin,  Frank 
Metcalfe,  George  T. 
Metcalfe,  Earl  K. 
McCarthy,  Thomas  J. 
Meyer,    John    L. 
Mixon,  Robert 
Morthurst,   Aloysius  F. 
Mela,  Alvin  S. 
Monohan,  John  J. 
Monohan,  Humphery  J. 
Murphy,  Frank  M. 
Neary,  Patrick 
Newton,  Raymond 
Norris,  Elton  R. 
O'Connor,  William  L.* 
Otr  John  P.* 


Parker,  Charles 
Peace,  Walter 
Philbin,    Ewing 
Reynolds,  Arthur  W. 
Richardson,  D.  M, 
Rupe,    Forest  D. 
Rowe,  Lester  G. 
Shultes,  Clarence  L. 
Searles,  William 
Sasser,   Frank   M. 
Scheffler,  Edward  S. 
Swift,  Samuel  S. 
Sherrell,  William  J. 
Stott,  Gerald  R.* 
Slayter,  Russell  B. 
Samuels,   Charles  G. 
Sears,  Stephen  C. 
Smith.  McRae 
Smoot,  Walter  E. 
Shanley,  Bernard 
Sharp,  James  W. 
Stovern,  Gotfred 
Sleep,  Leroy 
Strang,  Albert  L. 
Sasnett,  Lucien 
Sipma,  Edward 
Self,  Frank  M. 
Sebert,  G.  A. 
Sasser,  F. 
Sense,  W.  J. 
Sipp,  Paul 
Silliman,  Harper 
Schert,  Gustavious  A. 
Temple,  Francis  C. 
Tucker,   Milton   H. 
Todd,  Fred  L. 
Tuttle,  Malcolm  W. 
Underbill,  Charles  A. 
Urban,  Paul  J. 
Vance,  Vernon 
Vandiver,   Basil   A. 
Van  Alstine,  Frank 
Veach,  Columbus  H. 
Williams,    Henry   C. 
Winans,  Chester  B. 
Weller,  Reginald 
Warner,  Hunt 
Watkins,  George  F.* 
Worsley,  Thomas  H. 
Wallace,  Williamson  N. 
Wilkerson,  Marcus  E. 


*  Deceased 


372 


APPENDIX 


ROSTER  OF  SERGEANTS  * 

*  Abbreviations :  KIA  (Killed 
in  action  or  died  of  wounds)  ;^ 
A.C.S.  (sent  to  Army  Candidates' 
school)  ;   Com.    (commissioned). 

Sergeants — Co.  A. 

John  J.  O'Leary,  ist  Sgt— KIA 
James  J.  Hughes,  SgL  Major,  bsrd 

Brig. 
Joseph  S.  Higgmson 
Martin  V.  Cook— Com. 
Charles  Lanzner— KIA. 
Charles  Schmidt 
Daniel  O'Connell— Com. 
John  F.  O'Sullivan— Com. 
Michael  J.  Walsh 
Stephen  L.  Purtell 
Timothy  J.  Monohan,  Sgt.  Major 
Frank  H.  Squire 
Thomas  J.  Sweeney,  ist  Sgt. 
William  G.   Moore — Com. 
C.  Donald  Matthews— A.C.S._ 
Bernard  J.  White— Sgt.  Major 
Spencer  Rossell— A.C.S. 
Charles  A.  Underhill— Com. 
John  F.  Scully 
Patrick  Ames— KIA. 
Hugh  J.  McPadden 
John  H.  Dennelly 
Clancy  VanArsdale 
Lester  Hanley— KIA. 
Frank  J.  Fisher 
William  M.  Walsh— KIA. 

Patrick  J.  Doolan— KIA. 
John  A.  McDonald— KIA. 

Edward  J.  Mooney 

Clyde  G.  Evans 
James  J.  Duff— KIA. 

William  F.  Ogilvie 

Frederick  R.  Stenson— KIA 

George  V.  Armstrong 

Harold  J.  Henderson 

Michael  Morley 

Joseph  C  Pettit 

William  Mehl 

Albert  Kiley,  Co.  Clk. 

Harry  Blaustein 

Edward  P.  Wylie 

Sergeants,  Co.  B. 

John     O'Neill,     ist    Sgt— A.C.S.. 
KIA. 


Michael  C.  Horgan 

James  Taylor 

James  Brogan — KIA. 

Ole  J.  Olsen 

Harry  Ashworth 

John  A.  Donovan 

Speros  Thomas 

John  A.  Sullivan 

Alexander  Whalen 

Francis  J.  Lynch 

Henry  J.  Kiernan — KIA. 

William  G.  Braniff 

Patrick  Kelly 

Edward  J.   Kelly 

Preston  D.  Travis 

Joseph  Gilgar 

James  J.  Cullinan 

Thomas  F.  Brady 

William  Thornton 

William  S.  Gilbert 

Vincent  P.  MulhoJland,  ist  Sgt.— 

A.C.S. 
James  Donnelly — KIA. 
John  J.  Mahoney— KIA. 
Joseph  D.  Graham 
James   E.    Coyne 

Lawrence   Steppello 

James  Langan 

Matthew  J.  Brennan 

Martin  Naughton 

Frederick  Coyne,  Co.  Clk. 

Herbert  P.  McClymont 

Alfredo  Menicocci 

John  A.  Donovan 

Frank  A.  Frederick — A.C.S. 

James   Gilhooley 

Edward  Kraemer — KIA. 

William     F.     Mallin,     Bn.     Sgt- 
Major,  A.C.S. 

Hugh  E.  Stengel 

John  A.   Sullivan 

Joseph  Gilgar 

Sergeants,  Co.  C. 
William    Hatton,    ist    Sgt.,    Sgt.- 

Major,  H.  Q.,  42nd  Div. 
R.  S.  Powell,  1st  Sgt.— A.C.S. 
Eugene  B.  Halpin,  ist  Sgt.,  U.  S. 

A.  as  instructor 
Thomas  P.  O'Hagan,  ist  Sgt. 
John  D.   Crittenden— A.C.S. 
Thomas  Halpin— A.C.S. 
James  J.  Grace 
Edward  J.  O'Connell 
James  F.  Nelson 


APPENDIX 


373 


James  Barry 
Joseph  W.  Burns 
James  T.  Burns 
Denis  Cahill 
J.  H.  Casey 

Edward  P.  Clowe— KIA. 
Frank  W.  Colyer 
Walter  S.  Coon 
Nathaniel  B.  Crittenden 
Frank  L.  Curtis 
Daniel  J.  Davern 
John  P.  Duffy 
Frank  L.  Drivdahl 
Daniel  S.  Garvey — KIA. 
Herman  Hillig 
Harry  E.  H organ — KIA. 
Edward  J.  Kearin — KIA. 
Peter  Keller 
John   W.    Knight 
John  E.  McAuliffe 
Eugene  A.  McNiff 
Hugo  E.  Noack 
Thomas  O'Kelly 
George  E.  Richter 
Bernard  Ryan — KIA. 
Matthew  Synott — Com. 
Louis  J.  Torrey— KIA. 
Arthur  C.  Totten 
John   F.   Vermaelen — KIA. 
Anthony  Gallagher 
Joseph  Hennessey 
Michael    Cooney 
Louis  C.  Dcdecker 
Frederick  R.  Garrison 
Thomas  P.  McPherson 
Joseph  Peisel 
Archilbald  F.  Reilly 
Michael  Ruane 

Sergeants,  Co.  D. 

Thomas    H.    Sullivan,    1st.    Sgt — 

Com. 
Thomas  W.  Brown 
Colton  C.  Bingham,  U.  S.  A.,  as 

Instructor 
John  Cahill 
Martin  E.  Carroll 
Stephen  J.  Crotty 
Thomas  J.  Curtin,  ist  Sgt— KIA. 
John  Curtin,  Color  Sgt. 
John   Daly 

Harold  J.  Dibblee— Com. 
Edward    J.     Geaney,     ist    Sgt— 

A.C.S. 
John  J.  Gribbon— A.C.S. 


Patrick  Gropan 

Joseph  W.  Halper,  Co.  Clk. 

Patrick  J.   Heaney 

John   I'.   Ingram — KIA. 

Stanley  W.  Jones 

Thomas  F.  Kcyes 

George  H.  Krick 

Tosepli  J.  Ljnch 

Denis  McAalifTe 

Patrick  J.  McDonough 

Edward  A.  Mclntee 

Martin  McMahon 

John  McXamara — KIA. 

John  P.  Mohr 

John  F.  Moran 

George  R.  Morton 

Lester  J.  Moriarty 

Hubert    V.    Murray,    ist    Sgt.— - 

A.C.S. 
Denis  Murphy 
Denis  O'Brien 
Denis  O'Connor 
Daniel  B.  J.  O'Connell,  Reg.  Sgt.-' 

Major 
Thomas  M.  O'Malley 
Richard  W.  O'Neill 
Daniel  J.  O'Neill 
William  J.  Maloney — Com. 
Edward  B.  Smith 
Arthur  C.  Strang — Com. 
Joseph  P.  Tracy 
James  S.  Whitty 
Joseph  L.  Sheehan,  ist  Sgt 
James  O'Brien 
Herbert  DeWilde 
Dalton  Smith 
Edgar  T.  Farrell 
Michael  J.  McAuliffe 
Martin  J.   Hurst 
Robert  K.  Niddrie 

Sergeants,  Co.  E. 

William    L.    Bailey,    1st    Sgt.— U/ 

S.  A.,  as  In.structor 
Thomas  A.  Carney — Com. 
Charles  F.  Finnerty — Com,- 
William    Lippincott — Com* 
William  T.  Kelly — Com. 
Andrew  Callahan — Com. 
Frank  Johnston, ist.  Sgt. — Com. 
William  Maloney 
Archibald  Skeats 
Douglas  McKenzie 
Frank    E.    Donnelly,     ist    Sgt. — 

A.C.S. 


874 


APPENDIX 


Bernard  J.  Kelly 

Hugh  McKiernan 

John  F.  Riordan 

John  A.  Wilde 

William  J.  Foley 

James  Moran 

Daniel  Donohue 

Harold  J.  Carmody 

Michael  Lynch— KIA. 

Lester  Lenhart — KIA. 

William  A.  Halligan — Co.  Clk. 

Leon  Hodges 

John   Schluter — A.C.S. 

Alban  A.  Delaney — A.C.S. 

James  Hyland 

Carl  Kahn 

Edward  P.  Scanlon,  Reg.  Sup.  Sgt. 

Edward  J.  Vahey 

Alexander  Smeltzer 

John  Burke 

Michael   Darcy 

Arthur  J.  Lefrancois 

James  McCready 

Augustus  Morgan 

Thomas  J.  Reidy 

Thomas  Gaffney 

Alfred  S.  Helmer 

George  S.  Malloy 

Edward  J.  Rickert 

John  J.  Horan,  Co.  Clk. 

Sergeants,  Co.  F. 

J     eph  V.  Blake,  ist  Sgt.— A.C.S. 
T  mothy  J.  McCrohan,  ist  Sgt. — 

A.C.S. 
James  J.  McGuinn 
Philip   Gargan 
John  J.  Keane — Com. 
William   F.   Hanifin — Com. 
Herbert  L.  Doyle — Com. 
Joseph  A.  Wynne 
Michael     J.     Bowler,     Bri.     Sgt. 

Major— A.C.S. 
Edward  A.  Ginna 
Charles    B.    Echeverria — KIA. 
Joseph  H.  Trueman — A.C.S. 
Eugene  Cunningham — A.C.S. 
Philip  T.  Boone — Com. 
RavTnond  A.  Long 
William  E.  Boone 
John   P.   Mahon — Com. 
Thomas  Leddy — A.C.S. 
Thomas  J.  Erb — KIA. 
Charles  E.  Denon — KIA. 
Michael  Douglas— A.C.S. 


Patrick  J.  Wynne 

Malcolm  F.  Joy 

William  Boland 

James  J.   McCormack 

John  R.  Butler 

Theodore  H.  Hagen 

Lawrence  J.  Whalen — KIA. 

Cornelius  Behan 

James  W.  Brennan,  1st  Sgt. 

James  J.  Bevan 

Leo  J.  McLaughlin 

John  J.  Gill 

Louis  D.  Edwards 

William  Graceley 

Albert  E.  Curtis 

Maurice  Fine 

Harold  E.  Dahl,  Co.  Clk. 

Timothy  Keane 

Sergeants,  Co.  G. 

John  H.  Burke,  ist.  Sgt. — Com. 
John  Meaney,  ist  Sgt. — U.  S.  A. 

as  Instructor 
Charles    B.    Grundy,    ist.    Sgt.— 

ACS. 
Frank  W.  Bull,  ist  Sgt.— Com. 
Alfred  H.  Taylor,  ist  Sgt. 
John  McNamara,  ist  Sgt. 
Charles  J.  Meagher,  ist  Sgt. 
Charles  Sulzberger — Com. 
Joseph  ]\IcCourt 
John  W.  Farrell 
William  Farrell 
Patrick  Donohue 
Leroy  T.  Wells — Com. 
William  Durk 
James  P.  Robinson — KIA. 
Denis  Downing — KIA. 
Thomas  Slevin 
John  J.  Conroy 
James  Murray — Col.  Sgt. 
James  D.  Coffey 
Edward    McNamara 
Thomas  T.  Williamson 
Martin   Shalley 
Denis  O'Connor 
Denis  Corcoran 
Thomas  W.  Ferguson — A.C.S. 
Martin  Murphy 
Ralph  Holmes 
Michael  Hogan 
Denis  Roe 

Carl  G.  Kemp — A.C.S. 
Kenneth  B.  Morford 
Irving  Framan 


APPENDIX 


375 


Roy  L.  Bull 

John  W.  Brogan 

Frank  Malloy 

Patrick  Regan 

Hugh  Lee 

John  J.  McMahon 

Howard  B.  Gregory,  Sgt.-Major, 

42nd  Div. 
John  Ryan,  Co.  Clk. 
Franklyn  Dorman,  Co.  Clk. 
Maurice  Dwyer 
James  J.  Elliott 
James  Regan 
Patrick  Keane 

Sergeants,  Co.  H, 
Joseph  E.  Nash,  ist  Sgt. — Com. 
Bernard  Finnerty — KIA. 
Patrick  F.  Craig — Com. 
Robert  V.  Frye — Com. 
James  J.  Hamilton — KIA. 
Joseph  Mattiello 
Patrick   Neary — Com. 
Daniel  J.  O'Neill,  ist  Sgt— KIA. 
Jerome  F.  O'Neill,  I  St.  Sgt.— A.C.S. 
George  G.  Ashe — Com. 
Daniel  L.  Dayton — Com. 
Reginald  Mitchell — Com. 
John  F.  Tully— A.C.S. 
John  F.  O'Connor,  ist.  Sgt. 
Frank  S.  Condit 
James  A.  Dooley 
Miles  V.  Dowling 
John  P.  Furey 
Charles  J.  Gavin 
Bruno  Gunther 
Martin  J.  Higgins 
James  Hogan 
John  Lynch 
Andrew  Murray 
William  J.  Murray,  Co.  Clk. 
James  F.  O'Brien 
William  O'Neill,  ist  Sgt.— KIA. 
William    Smythe 
James  Todd 
Patrick  Travers 
Michael  Treacey 
Dudley  M.  Winthrop 
Frank  A.  Mader 
John  J.  Ryan 
William  J.  Fleming 
Patrick  J.  Dw3'er 
John  J.  Walker 
Joseph  O'Rourke— KIA. 
Eugene  J.  Sweeney 


Sergeants,  Co.  I. 

Henry  K.  Adikes 

William     T.     Beyer— Batt     Sgt.- 
Major 

Charles  A.  Connolly— KIA. 

Charles  R.  Cooper 

Patrick  Collins— KIA. 

Martin   Durkin 

William  G.  Dynan 

Otto  Fritz 

Patrick  Flynn 

Charles  J.  Ford— KIA. 

Alfred  F.  Georgi — Co.  Clk. 

Charles  H.  Garrett 

Michael  J.  Jordan — A.C.S. 

William  Harrison — KIA. 

James  J.  Hennessey — A.C.S. 

Edward     P.     Joyce— Batt.     Sgt.- 
Major,  A.C.S. 

John  F.  Joyce — Com. 

William  Lyle 

William  F.  Lyons 

Leo    Larney — Com. 

William  McLaughlin— KIA. 

Richard  McLaughlin 

John  C.  McDermott 

Hugh  McFadden 

Patrick  T.  McMeniman,  ist  Sgt— 
U.  S.  A.,  as  Instructor 

Frank  McMorrow,  ist  Sgt. 

Frank  Mulligan 

Harold  J.  Murphy 

Wilfred   Fee  '^o 

Joseph  F.  Neil  *' 

Thomas  P.  O'Brien 

James  Quilty 

William  Reutlinger 

Patrick  Rogan 

John  J.  Sheehan 

Edward  Shanahan,  1st  Sgt. 

Charles  B.  Stone— KIA 

James  Sullivan 

George  Strenk 

James  Warnock 

Sergeants,  Co.  K. 

Timothy   J.    Sullivan,    ist    Sgt.— 

A.C.S. 
Francis  Meade — A.C.S. 
James  J.  Mullen 
Claude  Da  Costa — A.C.S. 
John   H.    Embree— KIA. 
Frank  Doughney — KIA. 
John  L.  Ross— KIA. 


376 


APPENDIX 


John  Gavaghan — KIA. 

Peter  J.  Crottv— KIA. 

Bernard  J.   McElroy— KIA 

John  J.  McLoughHn 

William  B.  Montross 

John  J.  Gibbons 

James  J.   Sullivan 

Herbert   F.    McKenna— A.C.S. 

Patrick  Boland 

Bernard  Leavy 

Joseph  M.  Farrell — Com. 

Leo  G.  Bonnard — A.C.S. 

Wilfred  T.  Van  Yorx— A.C.S. 

Herbert  J.  Kelly— A.C.S. 

Harold  A.  Benham 

John  T.  Vogel 

George  F.  Meyer 

George  C.  Sicklick 

Edward  K.  Rooney 

James  F.  Kelly 

Patrick  J.  R3'an 

Max  Puttlitz 

Michael   Costello,   Co.   Clk. 

Francis  Caraher 

William  P.  McKessy 

John  Naughton 

Cornelius  Rooney 

Philip  Hellriegel 

Oliver  Atkinson 

Robert  L.  Crawford 

James  J.  Dalton 

James  W.  Daly 

Thomas   M.   Gleason 

Augustus  F.  Hughes 

Sergeants,  Co.  L. 

Eugene  F.   Gannon,    ist   Sgt. — U. 

S.  A.,  as  Instructor 
John  J.  Ahearn 
Joseph  Beliveau 
Christian  F.  Bezold 
Richard  Blood 

Thomas  F.  Collins — Com.,  KIA. 
Raymond  Convey — KIA. 
John  J.  Donoghue— A.C.S.,  KIA. 
Frank  J.  Duffy,  Sgt.-Major,  42nd 

Div. 
Thomas  E.  Dunn 
Michael   Fitzpatrick 
Lewis  M.  French 
Joseph  A.  Grace 
Thomas  A.  Hefifernan,  ist  Sgt. — 

ACS 
George  "s.  Kerr— KI.A. 
Thomas  Kiernan — A.C.S. 


Nicholas  A.  Landzert — KIA, 

John  J.  Larkin — Com. 

Patrick  McCarthy 

Eugene  McCue,  ist  Sgt. 

Harry  McDermott 

Hugh  McGriskin 

John  B.  McHugh 

Arthur   McKenny 

Thomas  McLoughlin 

William  E.  Ma,linka— A.C.S. 

John  J.  Mulvey 

John  E.  Mullen 

James  J.   Murphy 

William  J.  Murphy 

George  V.  Murphy 

John  J.  Murphy 

Daniel  O'Brien 

Thomas   P.   O'Donovan — KIA 

Charles  Peacox 

David   Redmond — A.C.S. 

Valentine  Roesel 

William  Sheahan,  Col.  Sgt. — KIA. 

Charles   Siedler — A.C.S. 

Walter  F.  Watson 

Fred  G.  Wittlinger,  1st  Sgt. 

Bernard  Vv'oods 

John  Southworth 

Patrick  McCarthy 

Leo  Mullin 

Sergeants,  Co.  M. 
John  J.   Kenny,    ist   Sgt. — A.C.S. 
Joseph  E.  Jerue — A.C.S. 
Ambrose  Sutcliff 
Francis  Eustace,  ist  Sgt. 
Denis   McCarthy 
Richard   J.   McCarthy— A.C.S. 
Peter    Cooney — KIA. 
Sydney  A.  DaCosta — A.C.S. 
David  G.  Morrison — Com. 
Charles  Pfeiffer — Com. 
Howard  D.   Emerson,   1st   Sgt. — 

A.C.S. 
James  McGarvey,  ist  Sgt. — Com. 
Frank  J.  Rogers — Com. 
William  J.  Francis — KIA. 
Patrick  B.  Hayes 
Herman    H.   VonGlahn — Com. 
Henry  S.  Fisher — A.C.S. 
James  J.  Hughes — A.C.S. 
Harry  Messemer 
Frank  May 
John  Barrow 
James  M.  Major 
Patrick  J.  Clark 


APPENDIX 


'i  ^ 


Joseph  A.  Moran 
Fernand  C.  Thomas 
Edward  F.  Flanagan 
Francis  X.    McNaniara 
John  J.  McLoughlin 
Thomas  Courtney 
John  O'Connor 
John  B.  IManson 
John  J.  Feeley 
James  F.  Shanahan 
Eddie  I.  Stevens — Co.  Cllc 
Denis  Donovan 
Daniel  Flynn 

Sergeants,  Supply  Co. 
Joseph  F.  Flanncry,  Reg.  Supply 

Sgt. 
Edward  P.  Scanlon,  Reg.  Supply 

Sgt. 
John    J.    Kennedy,    Reg.    Supply 

Sgt. 
Joseph  Comiskey,  ist  Sgt. 
Roland  Ferdinando,  ist  Sgt. 
James  W.  Henry 
Charles  Feick 
James  J.  Heflfernan 
William  Nicholson 
James  Murphy 
Walter  Bishop 
Robert  Goss 

Thomas  S.  I.acey — Com. 
William  G.  Fagan 
Harry  Mallen 
Charles  Larson 
James  I\IcMahon 
William    J.    Drennan — A.C.S, 
Robert  Stanton — Co.  Clk. 
Edward  L.   Callahan 
Bernard   Lowe 
Arthur  B.  Nulty 

Frank  Nelson — Co.  Clk. 

Sergeants.  Headquarters  Co. 
Donald   P.  Adair 
William  J.  Arenholz — Com. 
Pendleton  Beall— A.C.S. 
Abram  Blaustein — Com, 
Leonard  J.  Beck 
Robert  A.  Blackford 
John  F.  Boyle 
Herbert  E.  Clarke 
Robert  L.  Clarke 
Stewart  S.  Clinton 
Gustav   Cosgrove 
Richard  J.  Cray 


Fred  W.  Cudmore 

Ronald  O.  Dietz 

Robert  Donnelly 

Francis  Driscoll,  U.  S.  A.,  as  In- 
structor 

Lemist  Esler,  U.  S.  A.,  as  Instruc- 
tor 

William  Evers — Band 

Alfred  H.  Fawkner — Com. 

William  E.  Fernie 

Thomas  E.  Fitzsimmons 

Lawrence  J.  Flynn — Band 

Jerome  Goldstein 

Leonard  P.  Grant — Com. 

Constantine  J.  Harvey 

Gerald  L.  Harvey 

George  D.  Heilman 

Diedrich  Heins 

Edward  J.  Hussey — KIA. 

Arthur  C.  Jaeger 

John  V.   Kerrigan 

Joyce   Kilmer — KIA. 

Russell    Klages 

George  D.  Kramer 

Robert  N.  Lee 

Charles  Leister 

James  Ljnch — Band 

Thomas  E.  Lynch 

Thomas  J.   AlcCarthy,   ist   Sgt. — 
Com. 

Samuel  G.  McConaughy 

Leonard  Monzert — A.C.S. 

Thomas  Mullady 

John  J.  Mullins,  Sgt.  Bugler 

William  P.  Murray— Band 

Frank  Miller — Band 

Erwin  L.  Meisel 

William  P.  Neacy— A.C.S. 

James  O'Brien 

Francis  A.  O'Connell,  Col.  Sgt. — 
Com. 

Denis  O'Shea,   ist  Sgt. — Com. 

Medary  A.  Prentiss — Com. 

Theodore  C.  Ranscht 

Michael  Rendini 

Leslie  B.  Reynolds 

Kenneth  G.  Russell — Com. 

John  J.  Rvan,  ist  Sgt 

Walter  T.  Ryan 

William  F.  Shannon 
William  J.  Sieger 

James  V.  Smith 

Ambrose  M.   Steinert,   Reg.   Sgt,- 

Major 
Patrick  Stokes — Band 


378 


APPENDIX 


Albert  L.  Strang,  Batt.  Sgt.-Major 

— Com. 
Miles  Sweeney — Band 
Thomas  J.  Taylor 
Walter  F.  Thompson — Co.  Clk, 
Robert  Taggart 

Harrison  J.  Uhl,  Col.  Sgt. — Com. 
George  W.  Utermehle 
Emmett  S.  Watson 
Roy  A.  West 

Marcus    E.  Wilkinson — Com. 
Charles  F.  Willermin 
Frederick  T.  Young 
Howard  R.  Young 
Hc'Ty  E.  Zitzmann — Band  Leader 
Edvvard   H.  Jeffries — Com. 

Sergeants,  Machine-Gun  Co. 
A.  Andrews 
Gerald  Beekman 
Harry  P.  Bruhn— KIA. 
Thomas  J.  Berkley — Com. 
J.  T.    Brooks— KIA. 
Anthony  J.  Daly 
Thomas  J.  Devine — Com. 
Thomas  F.  Doherty 
VVilliam  A.  Drake— KIA. 
Victor  M.  Denis 
Maurice  Dunn 
E.  O.  Ericksson — Com. 
Paul  R.  P'ay 
John  H.  Flint 
Frank   Gardella — KIA.   .. 
J.  J.  Hagerty — Com. 


Peter  Gillespie 

C.  F.  Hunt 

J.  R.  Keller 

L.  Kerrigan 

Ralph  C.  Ketchum — Com. 

John  Kilgannon 

James  E.  Ledwith 

Allen  J.  McBride— Com. 

John  J.  McBride,  ist  Sgt. 

Harry  J.  McKelvey — Co.  Clk. 

John  T.  Malvey 

T.  J.  Meredith 

K.  F.  Morey 

John  Mulstein 

Maurice  M.  O'Keefe 

William  Patterson 

Sidney  F.  Ryan 

William  A.  Sheppard,  U.  S,  A.,  as 

Instructor 
John  J.  Spillane 
Joseph  McCourt,  ist  Sgt. 
Frank  Stevens 

Sergeants,  San.  Det. 

Warren  W.  Lokker,  Sgt.  ist  Class 

William  Helgers,  Sgt.  ist  Class 

Victor  L.  Eichorn 

Arthur  Firman 

William  F.  Hayes 

William  J.  Maher 

Daniel  McConlogue 

William  K.  McGrath 

Thomas  V.  Boland— Co.   Clk. 


APPENDIX  S7 


IRISH  NAMES 


Since  returning  home  I  have  read  with  great  interest  the  unique 
historical  study  of  Mr.  Michael  J.  O'Brien  on  the  part  played  by  the 
Irish  in  the  early  history  of  the  Colonies  and  particularly  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  founded  on  an  exhaustive  examination  of  Irish  names 
inscribed  in  army  rosters  and  other  records  of  the  period.  In  order 
to  avoid  the  suspicion  of  over-playing  his  hand,  Mr.  O'Brien  had  to 
confine  himself  to  names  like  his  own,  which  undeniably  indicate  Irish 
birth  or  descent.  lie  must  have  passed  over  many  names  which  are 
common  in  every  group  of  Irish  throughout  the  world. 

If  we  take  only  the  names  which  have  become  prominent  in  the  re- 
cent endeavors  to  establish  the  independence  of  Ireland — De  Valera 
and  Marcoviecz  do  not  sound  particularly  Irish  (even  the  militant 
lady's  maiden  name  of  Gore-Booth  does  not  much  improve  the  matter)  ; 
and  while  Kelly,  Ryan,  Dunn  and  Duffy  are  to  the  manner  born,  there 
was  a  time  when  Walsh,  Pearse,  and  Plunkett  were  foreign  names, 
Norman  or  Danish ;  and  Kent,  McNeil  and  Griffiths  might  very  well  be 
respectively  English,  Scotch  or  Welsh. 

In  the  Regiment  we  had  some  good  men  of  Scottish  descent,  but  we 
had  a  number  who  volunteered  for  the  Regiment  drawn  by  Irish  race 
feeling,  bearing  the  names  of  Johnston,  Cowie,  Wilson,  Bailey,  Arm- 
strong, Saunders,  Campbell,  Thompson,  Chambers,  Gordon,  Ross, 
Scott,  Watson,  Stewart,  Christy,  Finlay,  Grimson,  Hamilton,  Barr, 
Graham,  Gillespie,  Black,  Walker,  Catterson,  Robinson,  Holmes,  Grant, 
Dunbar,  Eraser,  Kirk,  Patterson,  Gould,  Wylie,  Robinson,  Roberts, 
Donaldson,  Ferguson,  McMillan,  McDonald,  McGregor,  McPherson, 
Ogilvie,  Craig,  Cameron,  McAndrews,  McLean,  McKay,  Macintosh,  not 
forgetting  our  Lieutenant  Colonel  Alexander  Anderson. 

We  had  three  or  four  score  Jews  in  the  Regiment  that  went  abroad 
but  there  was  a  Coen,  a  Leavy  and  a  Jacobs  who  were  Irish. 

Other  regimental  names  that  do  not  sound  Irish  to  the  ears  of  the 
uninitiate  but  are  familiar  in  every  Irish  group  are  Clifford,  Duane, 
Clark,  Freeman,  Winters,  Phillips,  Williams,  Cunningham,  Curtis,  John- 
son, Gough,  Harrison,  Grace,  Jones,  Loftus,  Medler,  Matthews,  Morrison, 
Newman,  King,  Crawford,  Biggar,  Bambrick,  Ring,  Rice,  Blythe,  Graj'-, 
Judge,  Morgan,  Caulfield,  Gilbert,  Gilgar,  Campion,  Booth,  Humphreys, 
Cook,  Hill,  Parks,  Hunt,  Garland,  Gill,  Warren,  Reed,  Hurst,  Jenkins, 
Rogers,  Grimes,  Summers,  Smith,  Green,  Brown,  White,  Martin, 
Mason,  Lowe,  Roe,  Wade,  Woods,  Goodman,  Fleming,  French,  English, 
Holland,  Thornton,  Wall,  Travis,  Travers,  Morgan,  Fletcher,  Clinton, 
Richards,  Jennings,  Lynn,  Taylor,  Reynolds,  Grundy,  Stanley,  Turner, 
Edwards,  Dean,  Meade,  Conville,  Ward,  Clayton,  Eustace, 
Lavelle,  Clyne,  Battle,  Nelson,  Wynne,  Coppinger,  Morton,  Oakes, 
Fullam,  Lynott,  Lynar,  Lysaght,  Long,  Fennell,  Tuers,  Birmingham, 
Hetherington,  Temple,  Whitty,  Granville,  Howard,  Bealin,  Stanlcj', 
Vaughan,  Adams,  Nash,  Coneys,  Mylott,  Brickley,  Mitchell,  Diamond, 
De  Witt,  Hopkins,  Quigg,  Igo,  Taylor,  P>rris,  Ledwith,  Forrestal, 
Lever,  Hoey,  Fox,  Russell,  Sutcliffe,  Hillery,  Fisher,  Kent,  Boyce, 
Bevan,  Rothwell,  Adkins,  Courtney,  Mannix,  Orr,  Harris,  Farnaij, 
Hackett,  Hopkins,  Gaynor,  Gunn,  Broe,  Bush,  Goss,  Wilde,  Cox,  Sea- 
griff,  Marshall,  Davis,  Bergen,  Singleton,  Rankin,  Webb,  Small.  Nofi 
all  of  the  possessors  of  these  names  in  the  Regiment  were  bearers  of 
the  Irish  racial  tradition,  but  the  great  majority  of  them  were. 


880  APPENDIX 

Sometimes  the  English  sounding  name  was  imported  directly  from 
Ireland,  and  the  man's  nationality  was  never  in  doubt  after  one  heard 
him  speak,  as  in  the  case  of  Mansiield,  Bugler,  Maddock,  Elwood,  and 
others.  Sometimes  all  doubt  was  removed  by  the  Christian  name,  as 
in  the  cases  of  Patrick  Ames,  Patrick  Stokes,  Patrick  Thynne,  Patrick 
Porteous,  Patrick  Carlisle,  Patrick  Benson,  Patrick  Travers,  Patrick 
Fawcett,  Patrick  Gorham,  Patrick  Masterson,  or  Michael  Goodman, 
Michael  Douglas,  Michael  Bowler,  Michael  Gettings,  Denis  Richardson, 
Bernard  Clinton,  Robert  Emmett  Mitchell,  Bernard  Granville,  Francis 
X.  Goodwin,  John  J.  Booth. 

The  future  historian  who  writes  of  the  part  played  by  the  Irish  ele- 
ment in  this  war  will  have  a  good  deal  of  trouble  collecting  his  data, 
partly  on  account  of  the  tendency  to  bestow  on  children  what  our 
grandparents  would  call  "fancy"  names,  and  partly  through  the  inter- 
marriage of  women  with  Irish  names  to  men  whose  names  indicate  a 
different  racial  descent.  Especially  when  the  religion  is  the  same,  the 
children  are  very  definitely  Irish  in  race  feeling.  All  of  the  following 
had  the  Irish  kind  of  religion,  and  most  of  them  claim  to  be  of  Irish 
descent ;  George  Lawrence,  James  Archer,  Wilton  Wharton,  Colton 
Bingham,  Sherwood  Orr,  Melvin  King,  Earl  Withrow,  Lester  Lenhart, 
Archibald  Skeats,  Dudley  Winthrop,  Warren  Dearborn,  Hurlburt  Mc- 
Callum,  Harold  Yockers,  Dallas  Springer,  Joyce  Kilmer,  Clifford  Wilt- 
shire, Pelham  Hall,  Elmore  Becker,  Everett  Guion,  Lester  Snyder; 
while  others  in  the  same  category  bore  names  such  as  Dayton,  Lovett, 
Lappin,  Trayer,  Shepherd,  Harndon,  Harnwell,  Ashworth,  Bradbury, 
Everett,  Adikes,  Keyes,  Boone,  Bibby,  Beverly,  Aspery,  Cornell, 
Morthurst,  Battersby,  Dawson,  Chamberlain,  Cousens,  Hasting,  Black- 
burne,  Griswold,  Bagley,  Forman,  Myers,  Nye,  Firman,  Weaver,  Irons, 
Garrett,  Kyle,  Forms,  Kear,  Alnwick,  Boomer,  Dobbins,  Ogden, 
Dresser,  Frear,  Bennett,  Cooper,.  Gracely,  Schofield,  Fredericks, 
Walters,  Voorhis,  Chatterton,  Kolodgy,  Law,  Vail,  Field,  Throop, 
Menrose,  Hawk,  Waddell,  Drake,  Flint,  Elworth,  Maryold,  Knott, 
Hagger,  Espy,  Cuffe,  Peel,  Stiles,  Willett,  Leaper,  Gauthier  and  Denair. 

A  number  of  volunteers  were  drawn  to  the  old  Irish  Regiment  by 
the  bonds  of  a  common  faith.  And  in  the  course  of  two  years  spent 
amongst  them  it  was  an  easier  matter  while  performing  my  office  as 
Chaplain  to  get  a  line  on  their  personal  beliefs  than  on  their  racial 
descent.  We  had  for  example  Guignon,  Bonnard,  Pierre,  Viens,  and 
Pepin ;  Mendes,  Echeverria,  Rodriguez  and  Garcia ;  Gardella,  Brangac- 
cio,  Georgi,  Lorelli,  Guida,  Menicocci,  Tricarico,  Depietro  and  Sper- 
anza;  Romanuk,  Ragninny,  Hovance,  Sypoula,  Puttlitz  and  Ivanowski, 
v/ith  plenty  of  names  like  Arenholz,  Schmidt,  Stumpf,  Dietrich, 
Weick,  Schmedlein,  Schluter,  Leudesdorf  and  Kahn.  Some  with 
names  sounding  just  like  these  last  ones  were  Irish  on  the  distaff  side, 
such  as  Almendinger,  Winestock,  Schwartz,  Ettinger,  Schroppel,  Mehl, 
Rohrig,  Peisel,  Plans.  Landzert,  Clauberg,  Ritz,  Steinert,  Messmer, 
Zimmerman,  Finger,  Richter,  Herold,  Schick,  Buechner,  Sauer,  Beyer, 
Haerting,  Meyer,  Roesel,  Willermin,  Miller,  Dryer,  Hugo,  Wilker, 
Fisher,  Staber,  Augustine,  Dierenger,  Morschhauser,  Ritter,  Haspel, 
Becker,  and  Grauer. 

Two  small  groups  of  "Irish"  struck  my  fancy — one  with  Scandinavian 
names  like  Drivdahl.  Malmquist,  and  Larsen ;  and  a  few  of  the  Vans; 
Van  Pelt,  Vanderdonck,  Van  V/ye  and  Van  Benschoten. 

One  way  of  estimating  the  character  of  the  regiment  would  be  to 
examine  the  lists  of  the  dead,  to  find  what  names  preponderate  in 


APPENDIX  381 

them.  In  those  lists  we  find  seven  men  named  Kelly;  lire  McCarthy; 
four  O'Neill,  O'Brien,  and  Brennan ;  three  Baker,  "Brown,  Campbcllj 
Cook,  Cronin,  Daly,  Kane,  Lynch,  McDonald,  McKeon,  McLoughlin, 
Martin,  Murphy,  O'Connor,  O'Rourke,  Scanlan,  Smith,  Sullivan  and 
Wynne;  two  Adkins,  Allen,  Ames,  Boyle,  Byrnes,  Collins,  Coneys, 
Connelly,  Conway,  Curtin,  Dolan,  Dunnigan,  Donovan,  Dougherty, 
Farrc'll,  Fitzpatrick,  Ford,  Gavin,  Geary,  Gordon,  Gray.  Gunneil, 
Hamilton,  Hart,  Higgins,  Johns(Mi,  Lane,  Leonard  McMillan,  McKay.-, 
McKenna,  McSherry,  Malioney,  Minogue,  Mitchell,  Morrissey, 
Naughton,  Peterson,  Philips,  Quinn,  Reilly,  Riordon,  Robinson, 
Rooney,  Ryan,  Scott,  Slattery,  Thomson,  Williams  and  Walsh. 


382 


APPENDIX 


OFFICERS  OF  THE  NEW  YORK  CHAPTER  RAINBOW  DIVI- 
SION VETERANS 

President,  William  J.  Donovan. 
1st  Vice  Pres.,  George  J.  Lawrence, 
2nd  Vice  Pres.,  T.  W.  Ferguson, 
3rd  Vice  Pres.,  John  Farrell, 
Secretarj',  Daniel  B.  J.  O'Connell, 
Treasurer,  Timothy  J.  Moynahan, 
Financial  Secretary,  John  McNamara, 
Historian,  Francis  P.  Duffy, 
Chaplain,  James  M.  Hanley. 


BOARD  OF  TRUSTEES  OF  THE  i6sTH  INFANTRY 


Morgan  J.  O'Brien,  Chairman, 

Daniel  M.  Brady,  Vice  Chairman, 

John  Whelan,  Treasurer, 

Joseph  P.  Grace, 

Victor  J.  Dowling, 

John  D.  Ryan, 

James  A.  Farrell, 

Thomas  E.  Murray, 

James  A.  IMcKenna, 

George  McDonald, 

Major  Thomas  T.  Reilley, 

Nicholas  F.  Brady, 

Qarence  H.  Mackay. 
John  J.  O'Keefe, 
Louis  D.  Conley, 
Bryan  L.  Kennelly, 


(former    Presiding   Justice   of   the 

appellate  division.) 
(President  of  Brady  Brass  Co.) 
(former  Corporation  Counsel) 
(President  W.  R.  Grace  &  Co.) 
(Supreme  Court  Justice) 
(Chairman  Anaconda  Copper  Co.)] 
(President  U.  S.  Steel  Corp.) 
(ist  V.P.  New  York  Edison  Co.) 
(Public  Accountant) 
(Contractor) 
(165th  Inf.) 
(Chairman     Brooklyn     Rapid     Tr. 

Co.) 
(Pres.  Postal  Telegraph  Co.) 
(H.  L.  Horton  &  Co.) 
(former  Col.  old  69th) 
(Real  Estate  Operator) 


WOMEN'S  AUXILIARY  TO  165TH  INFANTRY 
U.   S.   A.  Inc. 


President 
Vice-Pres. 
Rec.  Sec. 
Cor.  Sec. 
Fin.  Sec. 
Treas. 

Trustees 


Mrs.  George  R.  Leslie 
Miss  Catherine  A.  Archer 
Miss  Elizabeth  M.  Hughes 
Miss  Louise  Reilley 
Miss  Margaret  Casey 
Miss  Nora  A.  Thynne 

Mrs.  Theresa  Hughes 
Mrs.  William  J.  Grady 
Miss  May  A.  O'Neill 
Miss  Mary  Duffy 
Mrs.  V.  Merle-Smith 


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